Moments Without You
by Higuchimon
Summary: Yamato hasn't been around in a while, and Taichi's decided to find out why. That's only the beginning.
1. Demanding Answers

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the canon characters who appear in this fanfic and am not writing this for any form of profit.  
**Series Title:** Moments Without You  
**Chapter Title:** Demanding Answers  
**Timeline:** Approximately five years after the defeat of BelialVamdemon.   
**Romance:** Future Taichi x Yamato, mentions of Yamato x OC, Taichi x OC, Jyou x Sora  
**Notes:** I edited this chapter. It does not precisely require a reread, as all I did was smooth things out and tighten them up a little.  
**Summary:** Yamato hasn't been around for a while and Taichi wants to find out just why._

Taichi glared at the door irritably, then banged on it once again, not caring that there hadn't been a response the last four times he'd tried this. He was damned well going to _get_ an answer, no matter how long he had to stay out here. If that meant he'd be where he was in a week or two, then he would be standing out here in a week or two. It had been far too long since he'd heard from his best friend. The last thing had been that he was going on a visit to some place with his dad for a story. The only story Taichi was interested in at the moment was the one that explained why Yamato hadn't been around for the past two weeks, and it had better be one good enough to win a Nobel Prize.

"Damn it, Yamato, open up!" Taichi also didn't care that the door wasn't at all impressed with his glaring. He shot it the most venomous scowl that he could manage yet again, in time to the imperious banging of his fist. The door still wasn't impressed, no matter how hard he pounded on it. Some part of his mind was convinced the door had somehow been crafted of Ishidas past, and they all were laughing at him now. It didn't put him into anything that resembled a better mood. "Ishida, this isn't funny any more!" It hadn't actually been funny in the first place, but the silence made it even worse.

He jerked his head around at the sound of the elevator doors opening up, expecting one of the neighbors to be there. So far they hadn't complained, but one of them would probably want to know just why he was standing out here in the hallway when whoever was inside didn't seem to want to let him in. He had no idea of how he was going to answer them. Telling them that Yamato hadn't answered his phone calls or e-mails in two weeks was probably the best bet, but his gut screamed against it. Taichi liked to listen to his gut. It made more sense than his head most of the time.

Relief didn't quite describe the way he felt when he saw the familiar figure coming towards him. Murderous rage came quite a bit closer, honestly, as he stalked over to Yamato, brown eyes narrowed angrily and fists clenching, ready to do what he had to do in the name of friendship, or just to blow off some steam. "All right, Ishida, where have you _been_?" It didn't matter that he now knew that he'd been banging on the door to an empty apartment. He had the person he wanted answers out of in front of him at long last. He also didn't care about being polite. This was Yamato. He'd understand, and probably reciprocate with a few good punches of his own if it became necessary. Some things didn't change, and the way the two of them settled disputes was one of them.

"Hello, Taichi." Yamato looked down at him from his slightly superior height, the hood of his blue jacket pulled up to conceal his hair so well not a single strand escaped. Taichi frowned; there hadn't been a single cloud in the sky when he'd come inside. Had a storm blown up _that_ fast? April weather could be tricky, but he thought he would've heard something, a peal of thunder at the very least.

Then he mentally corrected himself. He had something else he wanted to yell about instead of what might be coming down out of the sky. "Don't 'hello' me! _Where_ have you been? We've been worried sick about you! It's been two weeks! Not a phone call! Not a word! What's going on?" Part of him told himself he sounded a lot like a jealous girlfriend. He ignored that part. It didn't know what it was talking about.

"Staying for dinner?" Yamato asked, ignoring his questions as if he'd never uttered them in the first place. He unlocked the apartment and let them both in, leaving his jacket on. Taichi shook his head; Yamato had never been that rude before, and he wasn't going to let him start now. He'd get his answers, no matter how long he had to wait for them. If Yamato hadn't started to spill his guts in an hour or two, he'd drag the answers out with a hammer and chisel if he had to.

"Sure. If you make your stir fried shrimp and chicken, I _might_ even forgive you." He closed the door behind the two of them as Yamato headed into the kitchen. Yamato obviously wasn't going to talk about whatever it was any time soon, so he went on another tactic: distract the target and let him talk when he was ready. He wasn't very good at being patient, but he could manage it sometimes. "You know, I thought it was against some kind of Ishida law to cover up your hair inside. What's with the jacket?"

"It's nothing," Yamato told his friend. The musician started to pull ingredients out of their various hiding spots, humming lightly to himself as he always did when he cooked. Taichi had heard that so many times and couldn't help the smile that touched his lips at the sound of it. Any sound that came from Yamato was beautiful, even something as tuneless as humming. Of course, Yamato never hummed _tunelessly_. Taichi was certain he recognized one of the songs from the Teenage Wolves' album. It was _Everything To Me_, wasn't it? "Dad's gone for the weekend, by the way, so it's just going to be us for dinner."

Taichi tilted his head slightly; it had been quite a while that _he_ knew of since Yamato had been by himself for any length of time. Mr. Ishida didn't mind letting him stay home alone, but his friend had _always_ called him over to spend a little time whenever he had. So what was going on _now_? And why wasn't Yamato taking his jacket off? It was spring, it wasn't all that cold, and they were _inside_. Something was going very oddly wrong here, and he was slowly beginning to get the idea that it had something to do with that jacket. "Are you cold?"

"Huh?" Yamato started to sort through the things he'd pulled out, long graceful hands pushing and pulling them into different assortments. His focus was so obviously more on the food than anything else that the plan that formed in Taichi's mind was almost sinfully easy. The brunet grinned mischeviously as he started to slip closer to his friend, still talking to keep Yamato distracted.

"Are you cold? You've got that jacket on. It's not that bad outside, unless some kind of weird killer storm blew up since I got inside." He moved as silently as he could, not wanting to alert Yamato to how much closer he was getting. Sometimes his friend could react pretty oddly to someone else getting into his personal space. He'd never seemed to mind Taichi, but with how strange he'd been acting recently, better safe than sorry. Yamato might be able to hear him, but with his attention on cooking, he might not realize that Taichi was closer until it was too late to do anything about it.

"It's nothing to worry about." Yamato bent over briefly, checking out the pan selection, and Taichi struck as quickly as he could.

"Careful there, if you can't see what you're doing, you're going to burn dinner!" He grabbed hold of the hood firmly and yanked it down, grinning as he did so. He expected at worst some tangled hair, or perhaps even ungelled, and a shout that he hadn't been able to get to the store to get the required hair care products. That would have been what he expected, and was ready for.

He did not expect to see what he did, and he was not ready for Yamato to turn on him, blue eyes sparking in anger, and the overhead light to gleam strangely off of a head that was as bald as an egg. There were small spots of red dotted all around, and even a couple of things that looked like slightly oozing sores. Taichi's stomach did flipflops just at the sight of it. That was _not_ Yamato's head!

He stared, shaking his head and blinking his eyes several times to try and make certain he was seeing what he thought he was. It wasn't, but it was. He couldn't be seeing this, but he was. He really _was_. "Yamato...what _happened_?" Maybe he was mistaken and he wasn't actually awake. He could have been in one of those extremely realistic dreams where he _thought_ he was awake but things happened that just couldn't in the waking world. That would explain so very much.

Yamato yanked the hood back into place and busied himself with cooking before he said anything. "Remember I told you I was going to that lab with my dad a couple of weeks ago, for that story of his? The one that's specializing in new hair gels, creams, stuff like that?"

"Yeah. What was up with that? You don't usually go with him." If they'd done something to him on _purpose_ there, Taichi would make them pay for it. He could _feel_ the adrenaline starting to pump through his veins at the very thought.

"I was bored, really." Yamato didn't look at his friend at all, just chopped, cut, diced, opened cans, and worked. Taichi knew without having to be told that it wasn't something he really wanted to be discussing, but seemed to feel he had to anyway. Probably because of Taichi yanking the hood down and exposing him to the open air and Taichi's own eyes. "It sounded a little interesting. They've got some new kinds of things coming out I thought I might want to keep an eye out for. For musicians and actors. That kind of thing." The nineteen year old's shoulders hunched just a little, and Taichi's heart spasmed lightly at the sight. Yamato had never truly been _vain_ of his hair, but to lose it all because of curiosity...well, that was more like something that would happen to Daisuke than to the elder Child of Friendship.

"And?" He wanted to find out everything that was going on here. It would help him decide how much, if any, damage had to be done to this place. Perhaps some of the other would like to lend a hand. Mimi would definitly want in. Violation of hair was a major offense in her book.

"I wandered around some and had a little accident. Some of what they were working on got on my head. It was just a scalp infection. Kind of like an upgraded dandruff. Only a _lot_ worse." Amusement rippled through his voice. "I've been calling it the unholy bastard child of dandruff and psoriasis. Ever since then I've had to keep it like this. They're working on something to fix it, but until they find it, I can't really grow my hair at all. They need to be able to see the scalp so they know what's going on with it."

Taichi nodded slightly. Accidents could happen to anyone, but somehow they seemed to happen to the Chosen more than to anyone else. "So why didn't you tell me...us?" He hadn't said that. He ignored the fact the word had fallen first from his lips. Yamato didn't act as if he had heard it either, which made it much, much easier to ignore.

"You think I want everyone knowing? I haven't even told the guys!" Yamato waved a hand briefly in the general direction of the window, a slightly different inflection to his voice meaning the rest of his band. Taichi smiled slightly to himself; how many people would know just what he meant by that? Not even all of the Chosen would, he thought.

"Why not?" He brought himself back to the situation at hand quickly. "Did you think we wouldn't understand or something? We _are_ friends, you know. You should know that better than any of us."

Yamato turned slightly back to him, an amused gleam to those blue eyes that always seemed to catch Taichi by surprise every time he saw them. Even now, with that jacket keeping him from seeing the usual blond crown he was used to above them, they sparkled with inner life. "How about I shave all of _your_ hair off and you go and tell everyone?"

Taichi covered his wild mane protectively at once. "No!" How could Yamato even _suggest_ something like that? He shivered at the very thought of it, before doing his best to distract himself by asking something else. In the flash of a heartbeat, he understood exactly why Yamato hadn't spread the word to all the world. "Why didn't you tell _me_?" Now it was safe to ask that kind of a question. These things had to be done carefully.

"I...forgot?" The excuse was half-hearted at best, and Taichi wasn't believing it for a second. But if it meant that much to Yamato, he would let it go. Sometimes things didn't need to be pressed that hard.

"All right." His maniacal grin manifested itself. "Well, now we'll just have to have that Donkey Madness competition that we've been talking about for the last year. Ken's been giving me all _sorts_ of tips for months now."

Yamato grinned just as wildly, looking amazingly incongruous with his hands working so fast to put dinner together. "So? I hope you're prepared to be creamed." His voice had dropped a good octave or so, into a nearly sinful sexy register that Taichi had always referred to as his 'game voice'. If he'd ever used that in his music, the brunet was convinced girls in other prefectures would've had spontaneous heart attacks. And probably some guys as well, and a few random Digimon.

"Like _you_ could ever cream _me_!" Taichi refused to admit how much that voice affected _him_ as well. This was his best friend. You didn't date best friends. Or at least _he_ didn't. It could work for some people, but not for him. He'd told himself that over and over for longer than he cared to think about right now. Besides, Yamato was seeing someone, someone of the extremely female persuasion. For that matter, _he_ was seeing someone else. It wouldn't do to forget him. Not with barely a week left until he came back.

"Are you so sure about that?" Yamato peeked briefly over his shoulder, and Taichi's hormones decided right now was a very good time to do a dance of delicious awakening. He hated his hormones. They always tried to do his thinking for him. Usually what they wanted wasn't all that bad, but this was _Yamato_. He couldn't want _him_.

"Very sure. I _did_ get tips from the guy who beat the thing before he was twelve, you know. Not only am I going to cream you, but I'm going to rub it in your face afterwards." Double meanings began to run rampant in his mind, and he told those wayward hormones once again to quiet down. They paid him no attention. They had other things on their tiny ductless minds, things that involved Yamato and all manner of naughty little surprises. He wondered if he could persuade Ken and Koushirou to do something about them.

"We'll see about that." The temporarily bald blond bent over to check on the progress of dinner, and Taichi deliberatly turned his head to avoid seeing things that would have sent his hormones into sheer overload. He tried thinking of something other than the current topic of conversation.

Yeah, he knew something they could talk about. It might even remind his libido to behave itself. Or at least he could so fondly hope. "So since you haven't seen us, I guess you haven't been seeing Oonishi either." He frowned at the unintelligible mumble from the direction of the stove, and repeated himself quickly.

"Oh." Yamato pulled himself away from the stove and closed it carefully, dialling the temperature up a little higher at the same time. Taichi wished he'd look at him; he hated not being able to speak to Yamato face to face. There was so much more said by his eyes and his features than ever came out of his mouth. "I didn't tell you we broke up?"

"No." Taichi couldn't say he was that surprised. Oonishi Kiku hadn't exactly ranked very high on his list of people who were that great for Yamato to date. He'd been a lot happier when he and Sora had been an item. At least _Sora_ knew how to properly treat the sensitive musician. He'd never quite gotten why the two of them had broken up, and neither of them wanted to talk about it while he was around. They were still friends, but when it came to their months of dating, they were both strangely silent. "When did that happen?"

"As soon as she saw my new hairdo." Yamato clenched his fists lightly, then unclenched them, starting to clean up the mess he'd made creating dinner. "She tried to say that we were still going to be friends, but I don't think I really want friends like that." There was a little something extra in his voice. It was something Taichi had heard only a few times in the many years he'd known him. It was usually made up of equal parts anger, regret, and a general sort of rage, and all of it was _always_ directed at himself. Yamato hated making mistakes about people's character, especially when it came to his own love life.

"I never did see what you saw in her." Taichi did his best to sound noncommittal, no matter how much he wanted to track down Oonishi and explain to her why doing this to his best friend was one of the worst ideas in two known universes. He _definitely_ knew some people who'd want to help out. Gabumon came to mind first and foremost. Sora and Takeru were tied for second on the list, followed by Daisuke and Ken.

Yamato glanced down a little, and Taichi caught the briefest glimpse of a deep loneliness flickering across his features. "I don't think I know either, really. After Sora and I broke up...I guess..." He shrugged a little helplessly. "Would you accept being incredibly lonely and her being very attentive at the right moments?"

Well, it was at least a plausible explanation. Taichi wished that his friend would talk to him a little bit more about his love life. Maybe he could've kept Yamato together with Sora. Of course he wasn't entirely sure about that, especially since he was also certain he'd seen Sora and Jyou having some ice cream together just a few days earlier, but at least he would know more than he did now. But for the moment, he just nodded sympathetically at his friend, then tried to figure out something else they could talk about that didn't relate to either of their love lives.

"So, I've been thinking about volunteering at the animal shelter part-time," he finally said, latching onto something that he'd seen in the paper a few days ago. It hadn't really caught his attention at the time, but now it was something they could use to fill up some empty space. Yamato agreeably chattered with him about it, cleaning up as he did so. Neither of them paid that much attention to the time, finding comfort in just being around each other for now.

That changed when Yamato suddenly squawked and jumped over to the stove. "I forgot about dinner!"

Taichi blinked; he couldn't remember Yamato ever having done that before. But it appeared there was a first time for everything. As the oven door was yanked open, curls of smoke poured out, and Yamato stared at the charred mess that was supposed to be their dinner. He pulled his attention up to look at the temperature controls, and groaned, sagging down. "I set it too high. I've _never_ done that!" He shook his head slowly, stunned. "I burned dinner. _I_ burned dinner."

_He sounds like that's shocked him more than his **hair** did._ Taichi grinned to himself, then whined as loudly as he could. "Yamato! I'm going to _starve_ now!" His stomach obliged him by growling and grumbling just at that exact moment. He'd really been looking forward to Yamato's cooking, too. There was just nothing like it. But he wanted to distract the other so he wouldn't start moping about a little burned food.

He was distracted himself a moment later by Yamato heading for the phone, then looking back at him. "What kind of takeout did you want?" Yamato asked, waiting for him to answer before he dialed anyone.

"You're buying me dinner?" That was not usually Yamato's reaction to dinner falling through. Of course Taichi couldn't remember dinner falling through like this before.

Yamato shrugged casually. "It's my fault I burned dinner. I should've been paying more attention. And I don't want you to starve. So what do you want?" He grinned a little as Taichi's stomach growled yet again, demanding to be fed before it leaped out of his mouth and went in search of food on its own. "How about some chicken and rice, with wasabi sauce?"

Taichi didn't bat an eye. He wasn't going to be tricked into _this_. That might be _his_ favorite food, but he'd seen how much Yamato was revolted by that combination. "I think sushi and shrimp should do. It's not what we were going to have, but it'll do." It was also something that they both liked. He watched as Yamato got in touch with the nearest takeout place with that on the menu, and smiled. There were days when he knew exactly why Yamato was both his best friend and the Chosen of Friendship. "I'll go get the game set up."

"All right. I'll be right in there, after I clean this mess up." Yamato waved a hand at the disaster that had been his kitchen, already starting to roll his sleeves up. Taichi watched him for a couple of seconds before heading on into the living room. Just another normal day for both of them.

And it would be capped off when he creamed Yamato into the ground.

**

To Be Continued

**


	2. Game of Words

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the canon characters who appear in this fanfic and am not writing this for any form of profit.  
**Series Title:** Moments Without You   
**Chapter Title:** Game of Words   
**Timeline:** Approximately five years after the defeat of BelialVamdemon.   
**Romance:** Future Taichi x Yamato, mentions of Yamato x OC, Taichi x OC, Jyou x Sora, Ken x Daisuke   
**Notes:** I edited this chapter. It does not precisely require a reread, as all I did was smooth things out and tighten them up a little.   
**Summary:** Yamato hasn't been around for a while and Taichi wants to find out just why._

By the time Yamato made it into the living room, his hood tugged over his head once again to hide what had happened to him, Taichi was spread out on the floor on his stomach, one controller grasped loosely in his hands and the other beside him, waiting for the second player. The brunet looked up at him, a wide grin across his face, as Yamato settled beside him. "I'm going to nail you so badly you'll be _begging_ me for mercy!" 

"You wish." Yamato grinned, wriggling his shoulders as he got comfortable against the back of the pale green sofa. Taichi just shook his head, ignoring the way Yamato looked with his head half-hidden like that. It was much easier than he'd thought it would be, now that he knew what was under there anyway. He hoped they'd find a way to fix things soon, but for now, there were other things on his mind. 

"Isn't that _your_ line?" It felt good to laugh and joke around with Yamato again, as if they were kids instead of supposed to be responsible nearly-adults. This was how things were supposed to be, at least for a short while. 

Yamato smirked teasingly at him, relaxation coursing all through him. He'd forgotten just how tense he was with his scalp problems. Though he was quite certain Taichi had never forgotten, since the brunet spent half of his life teasing him about the other kind of head problems he had: the ones that had led to a dark time in the Digital World, to be precise. _I don't think he's ever let me forget that since I told him about it._ Well, there would be vengeance today. Or at least some fun. Either one was acceptable to him. 

"I'm going to beat you down until you can't breathe anymore. And you'll love every second of it." He didn't practice lines like that when it came to talking with Taichi. It just seemed to come naturally to him when they were around each other. Besides, right now he knew a perfect distraction, as annoying as it was for it to exist in the first place. He reached up and pulled the hood off of his head, letting the light gleam off of it. 

He wasn't disappointed when Taichi looked at him for a few moments, then turned back to the game and started playing. The distraction would come in time. He was certain of it. The way Taichi had stared at his head when he'd first seen it made him more than positive. 

Of course, his patience was rewarded, as it frequently was when he managed to dredge up a few morsels of it. A few minutes later, it became his turn to play when Taichi's digital avatar died a horrible fiery death in a lava pit. Yamato behaved himself once this happened. He only smirked haughtily as his game got started. This was much more fun than just sitting around the apartment all day being bored out of one's mind. He should've called Taichi over sooner. Of course he wouldn't have had _quite_ the same reaction to his head, but one couldn't have everything. 

"You know, you could _die_ sometime today and let me play again." Taichi pouted briefly twenty minutes later. Yamato flashed him one of his traditional thousand kilowatt grins. 

"Sorry, not hap---" He jumped, startled, as the doorbell rang and his finger jammed just a little hard on one of the buttons. The tiny representation of him slid into a lava pool, followed quickly by his own defeated groan merged with the tinny sound of the game's musical signature of failure. 

"Ha! Little Ishida Yamato, beaten by the takeout deliveryman!" Taichi teased, rolling onto his back as he laughed. Yamato glowered down at him, blue eyes gleaming in faux fury. 

"Hey! There's no need to be like _that_!" Maybe he could get Taichi to apologize, even if he wasn't upset. It would be fun to try, anyway. Perhaps some tickle torture would be in order, sooner or later. 

"Hey is for horses, and musicians like you," Taichi taunted him. Yamato rolled his eyes as he reached for his wallet and headed for the door. Some days he had to wonder where Taichi got his lines. It had to be a discount line store; that was just how old they were. He swung the door open, not bothering to fix his hood as he did, and looked at the delivery boy standing there with the bags of food. 

"How much is it?" He realized as soon as he spoke that the teenager was staring his gleaming, slightly scabby head with his jaw open. _Hmph. In my day, kids knew how to look at unusual things like a bald person without staring._ He grinned to himself, not really upset at the attention. He could have some fun with it, after all. "Excuse me, how much is it?" 

The delivery boy stammered out the price, taking the money Yamato handed to him without moving his eyes from the bare scalp. Yamato lifted one eyebrow lightly as he took the bags. "What? Never seen a bald guy before?" 

A faint squeak was the only response, combined with flame-red cheeks, and the boy ran off before Yamato could say anything else. Yamato watched him as he hurried out of sight, then closed the door, shaking his head. Maybe he should've behaved himself. He considered that for a few moments, then grinned. Nah. 

Outside, the delivery boy sighed to himself as he headed down to the street. _I thought he was **the** Ishida Yamato. Damn it. That would've been so cool._ He sighed again and headed on to his next delivery. Maybe he'd see a real celebrity sooner or later. 

Back in the apartment, the aforementioned Yamato was busy dividing the food between himself and Taichi. "There, I think that's everything." He balled up the bags and tossed them into the nearest trash can before eyeing the food thoughtfully. The fragrance was pretty good, though it wasn't really what he'd wanted tonight. It would do. "Hold on a second, I'll get us some drinks." 

As he got a couple of cans of soda out of the fridge, he heard Taichi starting to talk, filling him in on the things he'd been missing the last few weeks when he'd been too busy hiding from the world to talk to anyone. Apparently there was a lot of it. _Of course. They always want to do everything when I'm not around to see it._ "You should have _seen_ Daisuke's face when Ken kissed him!" The brunet declared, his eyes sparkling as Yamato handed him a drink. "I always thought it was going to be the other way around, really." 

"I know." Yamato settled back down and opened his drink, tugging his share of the food closer. "So they finally got together. About time." It had taken both their mutual protégé and the former Kaiser a lot longer than either of them had thought it would to admit those looks of warm friendship were a lot more than just _warm friendship_. He wished them the best, really. 

Taichi swallowed a few bites and leaned back some, shoving his fingers through his hair thoughtfully. "Now we only have to worry about Ken's parents. They want grandchildren." He made a slight face, more at the thought of something attempting to get in the way of his friends' happiness than anything else. 

"Great." Yamato bit off a chunk of vegetables and chewed it. Ken and Daisuke both didn't deserve anything like that the Ichijoujis could put them through if they wanted to be hard-headed about that. Adoption was perfectly possible, after all, if Ken and Daisuke wanted to go that route. For that matter, there was no guarantee that even if Ken had wanted to marry a woman that they would have had children. 

"I don't care that we're all growing up, I still want to look out for everyone, you know. And it's so _frustrating_ that I can't think of anything to help him!" Taichi rested his weight on his hands and stared thoughtfully at the ceiling, his voice dripping to a soft growl. "He's already been through more than enough, and he doesn't _need_ this. And if Daisuke finds out what Ken's parents think..." 

"What?" Yamato frowned; what was this? He'd always thought the Ichijoujis liked Daisuke. Even if they were going to be stubborn, they wouldn't be _cruel_, would they? 

Taichi looked at the blond and remembered he was still behind the times. "Daisuke doesn't know yet. I stopped by Ken's last week on my way to an interview, and overheard them arguing." At Yamato's slightly curious tilt of the head, he continued. "They were fighting about how wrong it was and how selfish and how could Ken do that to them." His jaw clenched slightly, eyes darkening with remembered anger. "And how if Ken _had_ to be gay, why couldn't he have at least picked someone smarter than Daisuke." 

Yamato's hands curled into fists almost at once. Daisuke might not have been a genius, but there were far more important things than brains and Daisuke had them all: a caring heart, an impulsive disposition, and a brilliant soul. "They could've lost Ken forever if it wasn't for Daisuke." The younger Chosen had never once given up his faith in the former Kaiser, paving the way for everyone else to accept him into their lives as well. Yamato couldn't even imagine what it might have been like if Daisuke hadn't been there, and he didn't want to. 

"I know." Taichi shook his head, glancing back at the paused game on the television screen. "Want to know the icing on the cake?" Yamato nodded, wondering just what this could be. It had to be something, or Taichi wouldn't have mentioned it. "Daisuke loves Ken's parents. Almost as if they were his own." 

_I'm not surprised. Mrs. Ichijouji's always had something nice waiting whenever we've been over there, and she's listened to Daisuke a lot of the time when his parents couldn't be there for something._ When Daisuke found out, it was going to hurt him right down to the core, whether he showed it or not. Maybe he'd want to talk about. Yamato decided to give the younger Chosen a call when he had the chance. He really didn't need to keep on ignoring his friends just because of some stupid hair. If Taichi understood, they all would, Daisuke especially. For now he just toyed with the remains of his dinner and snorted some. "If it wasn't for that, I'd suggest we fake both their deaths and move them permanently to the Digital World." 

Taichi chuckled softly, grinning weakly at his friend. "On second thought, you're right. Hiding away is definitely the easier route." 

"Which do you think they'd really prefer, Taichi?" Yamato wondered, rubbing the back of his head a little. It still felt strange to feel skin there, and he couldn't get used to it. He didn't want to get used to it. He wanted his _hair_ back! At least they didn't have any concerts scheduled for a while. Getting out of rehearsals was going to be fun, though. He'd think of something. "Living where they can't be found, where they're honored and respected, or being forced apart by a pair of wrongheaded parents?" He wanted to call them something else, but no words really seemed to be all that appropriate at the moment. 

The former leader sat up, punching his right hand into his left fist swiftly. "I've always been good at knocking sense into people. Maybe I should try it this time." His eyes went briefly distant. "You should see them together, Yamato. They glow." He frowned, then shook his head. "No, that's not quite right. They just _are_." He struggled for a few moments to find the words to say what he meant. "It's like who they used to be is a rough draft, and now that they're together, they're who we always thought they were, but _finished_." He sighed a little. "I'm not making much sense, am I?" 

Yamato found his own words for what his friend was trying to say. "Like the difference between music on the page and hearing it sung." 

"Exactly. Or like one of Daisuke's sketches and a finished painting. The sketches _look_ finished, but when they're actually on canvas..." He reflected briefly on how the hyper soccer player had turned into an artist. A hyper artist, but still...it wasn't what he'd expected when he'd first met Daisuke. He guessed it was all a part of growing up. It wasn't as if Daisuke had given up soccer, anyway. After all, who would have expected that he'd be thinking about even part-timing at an animal shelter when he was younger? Surprises waited everyone around every corner. 

"We could always take Ken's parents to the Digital World," Yamato mused, nibbling on a few more pieces of food. His eyes gleamed mischievously as he peeked over at Taichi. "And let a Monochromon know that lunch is served." 

Taichi snorted, an amused quirk to his lips. "Like a Monochromon eats anything but digital grass." He trailed off, eyes lighting up as he understood what the other meant. "But _they_ don't know that." 

"I know." Yamato purred wickedly. "And if there just so happens to be a WarGreymon and a MetalGarurumon in the area..." 

A maniacal grin wreathed across Taichi's features for a moments before he sighed and shook his head. "We couldn't. Ken's conscience wouldn't let him live with it." 

"Ken's conscience doesn't have to be involved." Yamato hissed lightly before sighing as well. It had been a fun idea, at least. Too bad all the really good ones were illegal or worse. But something would be figured out. It had to be. He wouldn't let it _not_ happen. 

Silence fell between them briefly, the comfortable silence of those who don't need words to communicate with one another. It was finally broken when Taichi murmured, "I've really missed you, Yamato." 

"I've missed you, too," the other replied, a faint smile on his lips as he looked over at his friend. Taichi was...glowering at him? Uh oh. This wasn't good. 

"And if you dare to keep anything else from me, I'll...I'll...I'll sic WarGreymon on you! Damn it, I'm your _best friend_! Even if you couldn't tell the others, couldn't you at least have told _me_?" 

Yamato looked away, a faint tinge of color to his cheeks, mumbling something. Taichi frowned at him. "What was that?" 

There was a moment of hesitation, and then, "I said, I didn't want you to see me like this." 

That was not what Taichi had expected to hear. "Why?" He also didn't expect to see the blush deepening across Yamato's cheeks briefly, or hear another soft murmur of words that was too low for him to hear. "Yamato? I'm not a Batmon, I can't hear _that_ well!" 

"I said, because I look hideous without my hair!" Well, that he had been expecting, at least the sharp and annoyed tone, if not the words themselves. Taichi still just stared at him, not really believing his ears. 

"Why in the world do you think that?" 

Yamato snorted and touched the side of his head lightly. "I have a mirror, Taichi. I can see what I look like very well." 

_Maybe he should trade in the Crest of Friendship for the Crest of Vanity!_ "You look different, not hideous. Regardless of what you might think, that hair of yours isn't your best feature." He pushed himself to his feet and poked his finger into Yamato's chest repeatedly. "Would I lie to you?" His entire posture and mien declared _argue with me at your own risk_! Yamato had banged some sense into him more than once. He was ready, willing, and able to return the favor, with interest. 

"I don't like how I look without it." Yamato murmured softly, turning his head away from Taichi. He couldn't remember when he'd been this uncomfortable around his friend. Hadn't he just been _perfectly_ at ease beside him? What had changed? It couldn't be the fact of his hair. That was already dealt with. But something had, and he couldn't for the life of him identify what it was. 

Taichi apparently didn't care that anything had, assuming he'd even noticed. "You might not like it very much, but you don't look hideous." Yamato only tilted his head slightly towards him, letting the scabs and other things reflect. Taichi rubbed his fingers over those same marks a little, and a shiver traced quickly down Yamato's spine at the contact. Was _that_ what had changed? Words from Sora whispered in his mind, and he shoved them away as quickly as he could. She was wrong. She was _dead_ wrong. He'd proven it, hadn't he? 

Ignorant of what was going through Yamato's mind, Taichi kept on talking. "You'll be just fine, Yamato. You just wait and see. And until then, I'm going to help take care of you." His eyes lit with the trademark Yagami mania, and _that_ sent an entirely different kind of chill through Yamato. "I can cook you breakfast!" 

His joy faded just a little as Yamato shook his head a trifle too quickly. "Taichi, I can still take care of myself. I just lost my hair, not an arm." He winced as his friend actually pouted at him. _How'd he learn to do that?_ "But if you really want to..." He couldn't just deny Taichi that. Not after that kind of look. Which was, he suspected, why Taichi had looked at him that way to begin with. 

"Great! I can even make my mother's four-bean salad. It's really good once you get used to it." Yamato knew perfectly well Taichi was leaving out the fact it had taken nearly fifteen years for _him_ to get used to it. Hikari hadn't even tried. There were benefits to long-term best friendship. 

But he couldn't let Taichi get away with everything. "Are you going to bathe and change me too?" He asked teasingly, grinning at the brunet. Taichi shook his head quickly, looking away as if to hide something. Yamato wondered what, if anything, it was. Probably nothing, at least nothing serious. 

"Well, no. I wouldn't want to invade your privacy that much." Taichi stared away a little. "I know you don't get that much of it. Besides, things like that should be saved for someone you love." Wistfulness tinged his tone, and Yamato again shoved away Sora's words from long ago. 

"Yeah, I guess." Yamato had never much thought about it, but the thought of Taichi helping him in the shower wasn't nearly as weird as he knew it should have been. It wasn't as if they hadn't bathed together before, after all, but it still implied a level of intimacy that he'd never had with anyone. _Again_ he tried to forget what Sora had said, and again he succeeded: for a few brief seconds. 

Taichi grinned weakly at him, his eyes not as gleaming or happy as they'd been only seconds before. "You just wait. One of your fangirls isn't going to throw herself at your feet. She'll steal your heart and you'll be glad you saved all of that for her. Trust me on it. I'll be right there with you when you marry her, too." 

"Oh. Yeah. One of the fangirls." Yamato couldn't think of a single prospect more likely to cause permanent nausea. He had to get away. At least it was late enough so he would have a reasonable excuse. _Why'd he have to say something like that? Everything was going so great and then he said...that._ He was almost positive he was green just at the thought, and it wasn't with envy. He stood up carefully, turning towards his room. "I'm a little tired, Taichi. I think I'm going to go to bed." 

"All right." Taichi waved briefly at the remains of their takeout, scattered over half the floor, and the game still paused. He could've sworn two teenagers had been here. Maybe they had been, for a little while. But it was time to get back to the world of adults, as irritating as that was. "I'll clean this up, all right?" He was startled when Yamato just nodded quietly. _That's wrong. He always does his own housework. I did it again. I don't know what it was, but I hurt him somehow._

He wanted to ask just what he'd said or did, but Yamato didn't give him a single chance as he headed towards his room, the door closing firmly, yet quietly, behind him. The faint click of a lock indicated he didn't want any kind of company right now, and probably not for the entire night. Taichi sighed as he began to pick up trash and a few scattered dishes and carry them to the trashcan and sink respectively. Yeah. He'd done it again, without a doubt. He wasn't sure what it was, only that he'd done it, and if he had known what it was, he would have done or said anything he could to take the sadness from those blue eyes and replace it with the same joy that had been there earlier, when they'd played their game of words, and when everything had been perfect between the two of them. 

_I won't do that again._ He swore it to himself. Even if he didn't know what it was he'd done, he wouldn't do it anymore. He would be the perfect friend, the best friend that Yamato needed, and he would see him through this little crisis, and into whatever lay beyond. They'd be together. That's what best friends were for, after all. To always be there for one another. He wouldn't ever give that up, not for _anything_. 

**To Be Continued**


	3. Endings Into Dawnings

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the canon characters who appear in this fanfic and am not writing this for any form of profit.  
**Series Title:** Moments Without You   
**Chapter Title:** Endings Into Beginnings   
**Timeline:** Approximately five years after the defeat of BelialVamdemon.   
**Romance:** Future Taichi x Yamato, mentions of Yamato x OC, Taichi x OC, Jyou x Sora, Ken x Daisuke, Mimi x Takeru   
**Notes:** I edited this chapter. It does not precisely require a reread, as all I did was smooth things out and tighten them up a little.   
**Summary:** Yamato hasn't been around for a while and Taichi wants to find out just why._

Taichi didn't let his worry prevent him from doing what he said he'd do. In a very short amount of time, he'd finished cleaning up from their dinner and gaming session. Once he was done, he looked around for a moment or two, trying to decide what to do next, then picked up the telephone. After all the other times he'd come over here and had to use it for something, he knew he didn't have to ask permission. Not that he probably could right now with Yamato in his room doing whatever it was he was doing. _Pouting,_ his treacherous mind told him. He ignored it. He was very good at ignoring the parts of his mind that wanted to tell him things he didn't want to hear. He had a lot of practice, after all. 

"Mom?" He smiled a little at the concerned tone in his mother's voice when she answered him. He might have moved out close to eight months earlier, but he still went there for dinner more times in the week than he didn't, and he liked letting her know when he wasn't going to be at his little place for a while. 

"Where are you, dear? Should I hold supper or are you going to eat out?" There was definite distaste for the whole concept of takeout food in her words, and he stifled a wider grin, even knowing she couldn't see him. Perhaps especially because he knew she couldn't see him. 

"I'm over at Yamato's. I'm going to be staying here for a while. He's not feeling that good and he needs some company." It wasn't exactly a lie and it wasn't exactly the truth, either. He had practice in that, too. 

He could almost hear her frown now. Having her children exposed to a disease wasn't high on her list of intelligent things to do. "Are you sure that's safe? What if you catch whatever he has? What _does_ he have?" 

"No, I can't catch it. It's not that bad, really, but his dad's not here for a few days and he could use someone hanging around." He was glad she didn't ask about Gabumon. Their partners were staying in the Digital World for a few weeks, keeping an eye on things in case of trouble. No trouble had really _come_ recently, but it was something they did just to be safe every now and then. "I'll come by for some things tomorrow. This shouldn't take too long, I hope." 

He managed to finish the conversation without telling her too much that she didn't need to know, then hung up with a deep sigh. _I should call some of the others._ He couldn't bring himself to pick the phone up again, though. Besides, with as late as it was getting, everyone was probably going to bed anyway. He stretched out on the couch, loosening his clothes to get comfortable. This certainly wasn't the first time he'd crashed out here, and he knew just how to make sure he slept like the dead on this couch. _Though most of the time, I'm in Yamato's room, not here._

Whatever it was that he'd said, it had to have really hurt his blond friend. Otherwise, Yamato would've let him in, or at least put the sleeping bag he usually used out there for him. _I'll find out what it was and apologize._ For that matter, even if Yamato wouldn't tell him, he'd just issue a general apology anyway. 

_I wonder what it **was**._ He was only telling the truth, anyway. Someday, Yamato really would fall for one of his fans, or for _someone_ anyway. Maybe it wouldn't _be_ a fan, but it would be someone who would treat him like a person instead of something on a pedestal, and that would kindle and support the young musician's heart in that wonderful way that it should be. 

The last sight Taichi saw that night before his eyes closed was the door to Yamato's room, silent and unmoving. On the other side of it, Yamato slept, twitching lightly as visions of the past rose behind his eyes. 

_He couldn't believe what he was being told. This had to be a dream. "Yamato, you're not in love with me. You're just trying to prevent the fangirls from crawling all over you." Sora looked at him calmly, an acceptance of fact in her eyes that he'd never seen before. _

"No, you're wrong!" He wasn't going to just let this happen. He couldn't! 

Sora shook her head a little sadly. "Yamato, you know I'm right. You could never be in love with me. You love Taichi too much. If you don't try and tell him **something** soon, it's going to end badly for both of you. Don't let that happen. You'll regret it for the rest of your life if you do." 

Yamato twitched in his sleep, turning over. His eyes opened a little, swimming with tears that he wiped away as quickly as he could. He hadn't listened to her. Instead, he'd started dating the nearest girl he could, just to prove to everyone what he wanted to believe was true, that he was straight, no matter what Sora had thought. 

_Saving everything for some fangirl. _The thought was nauseating. He couldn't have stood there with Taichi and kept on listening to that. It made everything seem so meaningless, especially when he kept thinking about what he had really wanted to say to Taichi as soon as those words had crossed the brunet's lips. He'd wanted to stop them the only way he could, with a kiss that would hopefully sear both of them in a fire that made a volcano more closely resemble an artic winter. 

He closed his eyes and tried to force his way back into sleep. He wasn't going to lay there and think about all the mistakes he'd made. That wouldn't change any of them, for one thing. 

Almost as soon as he was asleep, he slid back into dreaming. This time, it wasn't about Taichi or Sora or any combination thereof. This time, he saw Daisuke and Ken sitting side by side, talking and laughing with each other. He couldn't hear what they were saying, but he didn't need to. They looked so completely right together, each complete to themselves, but much _more_ together than they were apart. 

_They're so lucky_. Yamato groaned to himself as he turned over, eyes opening again. Moonlight was shining right through the window, almost as bright as sunshine, and just as annoying right at that moment. He groaned softly, doubling the groan when he realized he was practically dying of thirst. _He's probably asleep by now anyway_. It was late, and there was no way that Taichi _wasn't_ asleep, which was just what he wanted right now. He didn't really feel like trying to talk to Taichi right now anyway. 

He headed out of his room and into the living room, quickly spying Taichi where he lay on the couch, shirtless and gleaming in pale moonlight. The blond paused for a moment, watching as Taichi shifted slightly in his sleep, his chest muscles rippling lightly as he did so. He nuzzled a little into the small pillow nestled under his head, looking far too adorable for mortal words to describe. 

_I haven't seen him like that for a long time. He's really grown up a lot._ Yamato realized he'd taken several steps closer to Taichi and forced his feet to stop. What was he _thinking_? He wasn't going to stand here and stare at him all night, was he? 

One arm slipped away from where it had been covering Taichi's eyes to dangle near the floor, his bicep firm and muscular, and now elegant cheekbones were revealed. Yamato reached for the fallen arm almost instinctively to put it back, but before he could, Taichi had shifted again his sleep. This time he rolled onto his side, both hands tucked up under his chin. 

_He's really gorgeous._ Yamato admitted to himself. That was the least of his good qualities though. The blond could never forget Taichi's loyalty, his concern for his friends, the undying courage that made him what he was, the way he stood up to Yamato himself, or anyone else, whenever it was truly necessary. _And his pigheadedness. His determination._ There were a hundred things he could think of, and he knew there'd be a thousand more he hadn't even considered. _Maybe...I wonder if Sora was right after all._

His eyes flicked across Taichi's face, noticing the out of place worried little furrow between the eyebrows. _I wonder what's wrong. Maybe I should try and tell him, or at least let him know I'm not really interested in the fan**girls**._ Or at least not _just_ the fangirls. Regardless of where his affections lay or didn't lay, Yamato was honest enough with himself to admit that he did prefer both guys and girls romantically. He just hadn't told anyone else that yet. 

Yamato moved on to the kitchen and drained a couple of glasses of water before heading back through the living room. As he came back in, he saw Taichi shifting once more, stretching out almost sensuously as he did. His jeans were riding low around his waist, the faintest hint of color giving warning of the boxers underneath the blue denim material. The worried look hadn't faded in the few minutes Yamato was gone, either. 

Almost five more minutes had passed before Yamato realized he hadn't moved an inch, standing there with all of his attention on the moonlight-drenched Taichi. Without even noticing it, he'd seated himself where he could have a nearly perfect view, and had simply watched him, hardly bothering to breathe. 

The worry still visible on Taichi's face concerned Yamato. Something had to be really bothering him. Yamato stood up, ready to go back to his room and get some more sleep, then paused as Taichi seemed to whimper a little, disturbed by something or other. The blond stepped closer, reaching to brush his fingers across Taichi's forehead. That had always worked to soothe Takeru when they were younger, and he thought it might work now. 

Unfortunately, Taichi didn't appear to be quite as vulnerable to Yamato's touch as the Child of Hope had been. He didn't move very much as Yamato sat down, this time beside him instead of several feet away, finding a small spot on the couch that could hold him. The brunet shifted again, rolling onto his side, his legs curling up to cradle around Yamato as Taichi rolled into a fetal position, sighing softly. The worried look faded away as he fell into a deep sleep, almost cuddling against Yamato's backside. 

_I wasn't expecting that._ Yamato bit his lip, considering if he should try to get up. Taichi looked so comfortable, and with as close as they were, getting up might wake him up. _He needs his rest_. He closed his eyes, leaning back against the back of the sofa. _I'll just tell him he looked too comfortable to wake up if he asks._ He soon was just as wrapped in the arms of Morpheus as Taichi was.

* * *

Yamato groaned softly as the sunlight slammed into his face. What was with the heavenly bodies trying to blind him over the last few hours? Had he offended them and wasn't aware of it yet? Did they want an apology? Would he have to write some music for them? A few lyrics danced through his mind, not staying long enough for him to really put a tune to them before they faded away into the misty dawn. He yawned a little, sitting up and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. Taichi was still where he was, not having moved too much in the last few hours. The faint worried frown had reappeared, and that didn't bode well in Yamato's mind. 

_He looks even better in the sunlight than he did last night_. Yamato ran his hands through his hair and looked away. _I think I want to get back to my bed. Whatever he's worrying about, I'd rather not have to explain this to him, now that I think about it._ It seemed as if Taichi might possibly agree with him, since he rolled away without so much as the stirring of an eyelid just then. 

Yamato got to his feet, stretching some, then padded silently into his room, closing the door behind himself. He didn't bother locking it this time, though. If Taichi wanted to say good morning, or anything else, he wanted to hear it. 

Less than an hour later, Taichi opened his eyes and stretched, looking around carefully. There didn't seem to be any sign of Yamato having moved out of his room all night long. _Darn._ He'd had a rather nice dream about Yamato sleeping alongside him on the couch. It would've been nice if that were reality. He'd been so _warm_ in the dream, so comfortable and completely at peace. If only... 

He sat up suddenly as he got a good look at the time. "Damn it! If I don't hurry, Yamato's going to get up and cook breakfast!" Taichi raced silently into the kitchen and started whipping together something he knew Yamato would enjoy. Whatever it was that had bothered his friend last night, this might help fix things. Even if it didn't, everyone needed a healthy breakfast. 

"Hey, Yamato!" Taichi barely noticed the door that had been locked the previous night was now open as he squirmed his way into the familiar bedroom. If he had, he might only have presumed that Yamato had went to the bathroom in the night and forgotten to lock himself in again afterwards. That was his good luck, or so he would have thought if he'd noticed. "Breakfast! Come on, don't be lazy, it'll get cold!" 

As he took in the sleeping Yamato, he jerked his eyes away from the sight of the mostly nude blond. He'd forgotten just how little Yamato wore to bed these days. _Why is it even bothering me? I've got a **boyfriend**_. If you could call Kudo Ichiro a boyfriend when they'd only really had a few visits to coffeeshops and the promise of a date. At any rate, he shouldn't be looking at Yamato like that, because even if he didn't _really_ have someone, and Yamato was single, Yamato was _also_ not interested in guys, and was doubly not interested in him. You just didn't date your best friend. It was too weird. 

"Yamato! Come on!" Taichi grinned broadly as Yamato opened his eyes and blinked a little blearily at him. "I cooked! See?" He shoved the plate at his friend, snickering to himself as Yamato eyed it with the look of one not quite certain the food set before them won't rise up and go for one's throat. "You've got to eat to stay healthy!" 

"Thanks, Taichi," Yamato pulled the tray closer to himself and looked it over again, his trepidition visibly easing as he caught wind of the appetizing scents. "You didn't really have to go to this trouble, you know." 

"If it was a trouble, I wouldn't have done it in the first place." Taichi retorted as he settled on the edge of the bed, shoving his hair out of his face with one hand. "Did you sleep all right?" 

"Just fine. What about you?" Yamato picked over the food carefully, chewing a few pieces warily. Taichi couldn't blame him for that. It wasn't as if he had the greatest track record when it came to cooking, no matter how good it wound up smelling. 

"Just fine." Yamato used the same words Taichi had as he ate. Everything was passable, if not exactly delicious, but there was something extra he couldn't quite place with every forkful. It was almost as if some kind of emotion flavored everything. It wasn't something in the _taste_, but he had no idea what to call any of it. That didn't stop him from cleaning the plate, though, and looking at Taichi gratefully once he was done. "Thanks a lot." 

Taichi nodded, standing up and reaching for the tray. "Good. Glad you liked it. Now rest up while I go clean up." He wasn't all that certain just how to take care of someone suffering from non-terminal baldness, but he'd figure out something. If nothing else, he could be company to his friend, the way they'd been so many times to each other in the Digital World. It might not even be such a bad idea to pay a visit there if they had the chance. Neither of them had seen their partners in a while, and Gabumon wouldn't care what Yamato's head looked like. Neither would Agumon. 

He'd discuss it with Yamato later. Just then, he had dishes to clean.

* * *

Three weeks had passed since Taichi had turned up outside of the Ishida apartment. They'd made some trips to the Digital World, spending hour after hour with their partners and each other, having as much fun as they possibly could. Yamato's father had shown up at the apartment a few times, expressing as much disappointment as Taichi himself felt over his son's current state of hair, or lack thereof. Taichi was convinced he felt far too guilty about it, and Ishida Hiroaki kept going back to the laboratory where this had begun, nagging them as respectfully as he could to find a way to get that golden hair back where it belonged. Yamato went with him a few times, whenever the doctors thought they had something that might work, but each time, he came back as bald as he'd left. There was one sign of improvement, though: they'd managed to get the sores cleared up. That improved Yamato's mood to no end, though it wasn't quite as good as it would likely be when he had his hair fully back. 

After one such trip to get treated, Yamato slipped back into his apartment, his hood tucked around his head as it always was when he came back like this. The first thing he heard was Taichi's voice, talking to someone. 

"Of course he loves you, Daisuke! Even I can see it!" Yamato peered around a corner to see his friend on the phone, pacing back and forth furiously. "Daisuke, Daisuke, Daisuke! Your sister was just as stubborn about Yamato, but she got over it. I'm sure they will too." 

Yamato blinked slightly, coming in to sit on the couch and watch this. It was almost as entertaining as something on television. _It must be about Ken's parents_. They were the only ones that fit what Taichi was describing. He hadn't heard that much about what was happening with them, but he had a feeling that was about to come to a crashing halt. 

"No, you can't have XV-mon blast into the apartment and explain things to them. Wormmon wouldn't like it, and how do you think Ken would feel if you did that to them? He does love his parents, you know." Taichi paced a little, too involved in the conversation to notice Yamato as he sat down. "We're all frustrated by it. Yamato suggested a while back that our partners could pay them a visit. You know, WarGreymon, MetalGarurumon. Huh? Oh, he's fine." 

Yamato frowned, noting the wince between Taichi's eyebrows. That usually meant he was about to lie about something. "He's just had a really bad case of the flu. Didn't want to expose everyone else, you know." Ah, that explained it. Daisuke had asked about _him_. He'd been away from everyone else for over a month now. It was about time someone else had really noticed it. He still hadn't had a chance to talk to him about what was going on with the Ichijoujis. He was going to have to fix that sometime soon. He hadn't really had the chance to talk to anyone, despite all of his grand resolve to do so. But maybe now… 

"All right. I'll make sure to tell Ken when I see him again. Just keep your cool, okay? I'm sure it's hard on them with Osamu being gone, you know. I know it doesn't make it right, but give them a little time to get used to the idea." 

The blond chuckled under his breath. Taichi had grown up, whether he wanted to think it or not. "No, just because I'm older than you doesn't make me an adult just yet." A mischievous grin flickered across his face. "Of course not. I'm never growing up." He laughed some. "You mean there's something you _can't_ do?" Taichi nodded in reaction to whatever it was Daisuke had said. "That's what I thought. Just out-stubborn them. Right. I'll talk to you later." 

Yamato waited until Taichi had hung up before he said anything. "Well, how are things with them?" He grinned some as Taichi jumped slightly, staring at him with wide, startled, doe-like eyes. He shook his head a little, then sank down onto the couch next to him. 

"Daisuke finally overheard one of the Ichijouji conversations. At least he called me first before he said anything to them about it." Taichi made a face, sighing. "Your idea is starting to look better and better, you know. He was almost in tears at first, then he got angry. I haven't heard him _that_ angry since that guy tried to get in between Takeru and Mimi." 

The blond musician winced a little; Daisuke took his status as Takeru's best friend extremely seriously. The jerk who had tried to stop his brother from carrying on his long-distance relationship with Mimi had learned bothering someone Motomiya Daisuke considered a friend was a very bad idea. But there was something else on his mind right now. "Well," he looked over at Taichi, "aren't you going to ask me how the check-up went?" 

Taichi's eyes went even wider than before, guilt-stricken this time. "I'm sorry. How _did_ it go?" As much as he was worried about Daisuke and Ken, in the end, they were going to have to settle things on their own. This was something a bit closer to home. 

"Close your eyes." Yamato commanded, waiting until Taichi had obeyed before he tugged his hood off and picked up Taichi's hand. He gently placed it on his head, leaning forward, and waiting for the response when Taichi felt that thin, but quite definitely _there_ coating of hair. 

**

To Be Continued

**


	4. Departures and Admissions

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the canon characters who appear in this fanfic and am not writing this for any form of profit.  
**Series Title:** Moments Without You  
**Chapter Title:** Departures and Admissions  
**Timeline:** Approximately five years after the defeat of BelialVamdemon.   
**Romance:** Future Taichi x Yamato, mentions of Yamato x OC, Taichi x OC, Jyou x Sora, Ken x Daisuke, Mimi x Takeru  
**Notes:** I edited this chapter. It does not precisely require a reread, as all I did was smooth things out and tighten them up a little.  
**Summary:** Yamato hasn't been around for a while and Taichi wants to find out just why._

Yamato waited nervously, watching as his friend's hand moved a little across his head. He shivered just a touch; the sensation of Taichi's hand there was more interesting than it had been any other time during the last three weeks. _Interesting. Well, that's **one** way to put it._ In fact, it sent all kinds of pleasurable sparkles all through him. He wanted Taichi to keep on touching him, to do more…_no_! He couldn't ask that of him. He _wouldn't_.

In an attempt to keep himself under control, he watched Taichi's expression carefully, not certain of just how he was going to react to the return of the hair. Then the other man blinked a little, his eyes lighting up as a grin spread across his face. "I told you that you'd beat it!" Yamato was almost certain he saw a tinge of sadness on the edges of that grin as well, but it was gone, if it had ever been there at all, as Taichi leaped to his feet. "Stay right here! I'm going to go make something to celebrate!"

Yamato shook his head a little as the brunet vanished into the kitchen. Taichi's cooking skills still left a lot to be desired, but no one could ever doubt his enthusiasm. The blond rubbed a hand through what there was of his hair and sighed.

_What am I going to do?_ What Sora had told him still hovered in the back of his mind. How _did_ he feel about Taichi? He didn't want to think that he loved him. Taichi would probably laugh for a couple of hours if the subject was even broached to him. That was only one of the reasons he hadn't said a word about it.

The memory of Taichi drenched in moonlight hadn't left him for a moment either, though. It had cropped up in his dreams multiple times over the last three weeks, and once or twice he'd even passed through the living room to see the moon once more caressing his friend. He envied that lunar light more than he ever wanted to say. He didn't dare ask Taichi to sleep in the same room with him. Deep in his soul, he was afraid of what could happen if some of the dreams whispered their way out of his lips. Could he make any kind of excuse for them? He didn't think so.

He glanced up a little, hearing a muffled curse from the kitchen. "Taichi?" He dreaded thinking of what the kitchen was going to look like when Taichi was through with it. It would probably take him at least two or three hours to clean it all up. "Are you all right?" He was about to get up when Taichi peeked back into the room.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. I just remembered something and got a little distracted, that's all." Taichi grinned, waving the slightly damaged finger at him for a moment before he stuck it into his mouth and sucked. Yamato's eyes fastened on that briefly, until he forced himself to look away. That was _not_ what he needed to be watching right now. Was Taichi trying to torture him, unknowingly? Or worse, knowingly?

Taichi headed back into the kitchen, with more clatter and noise sounding moments later. When he returned, he sprawled into the reclining chair and stared lazily at the ceiling. "The cake should be ready in about twenty minutes."

"You didn't have to do that, you know, Taichi." Yamato reminded him, keeping his own attention on anything that wasn't the brunet. He was amazed at how many items in his apartment weren't Taichi.

"Of course I did." Taichi peered over at him, amusement dancing in his chocolate brown eyes and a smile caressing his lips faintly. "How would you know when to run in there to pull the cake out if I didn't tell you when it would be ready?"

Yamato rolled his eyes. How did he put up with this guy? Oh, wait, he was funny, he was cute, he was determined, and it was less straining than having to deal with murder accusations. On the other hand, he could maybe convince a Bakemon to pretend to be a less annoying Taichi if he really had to.

A long sigh echoed from where Taichi sat. "I have to go home soon. Maybe tonight, maybe sooner." He glanced a bit towards his friend. "I'm sure you're tired of having me around anyway, right? It's been a long time since we all but lived together."

Yamato said nothing. The idea of waking up to an apartment without Taichi wasn't a pleasant one. He'd gotten so used to there being _someone_ there, and to having that someone be the person he was beginning to think he wanted to wake up with for the rest of his life. _I wish he wouldn't go. I know he has to. He said he'd just stay until they fixed my hair, and now that **that's** done..._ It didn't mean he wanted Taichi to go, though.

"Are you going to tell the others what happened?" Taichi asked, still looking over at him. Yamato shrugged slightly, and the other frowned just the tiniest bit. "I was just wondering. I don't care either way, you know that." He turned to stare up at the ceiling some more. "I'll stop by tomorrow if you want." He shifted a little nervously. "You know, I forgot I have a date tonight."

"You do?" Yamato kept his voice as level as he could, when what he really wanted to do was yell, scream, and demand that Taichi break the date and stay with him no matter what. _Boyfriend. I am not gay. He is my best friend. If this guy bothers him the wrong way, he is **so** getting ripped to shreds._ Those were only best friend thoughts. Yamato told himself that over and over. He was pretty sure he could convince himself if he did that often enough.

"Hikari called and reminded me this morning after you left. He's been out of town since before you got sick, which explains why I forgot." Taichi grinned a little sheepishly. "He called to remind me this morning. When he didn't get an answer at my apartment, he called my parents' place, and Hikari called here this morning just after you left." He stared at the ceiling some more, lost in deep thoughts. Yamato didn't move, his own thoughts distracted and distracting. It wouldn't be lonely without Taichi. If he kept telling himself that, perhaps he'd even convince himself of it, too.

Taichi hurried back into the kitchen a short while later as the buzzer went off, not noticing Yamato's quiet sigh as he vanished in there. _This sucks._ The blond smiled a touch as his friend came back out moments later, looking quite proud of himself despite the second burnt finger being nursed between his lips.

"It'll be ready in a few minutes." Taichi declared, his voice a tad muffled before he pulled the injured finger out and eyed the reddened flesh in annoyance.

"I've got some burn cream in the bathroom." Yamato murmured, hurrying that way as quickly as he could. Taichi was getting himself hurt doing things like this. It just wasn't right. He needed to go home where he wouldn't be hurt and where this boyfriend of his would take care of him. _And he'd better!_

The brunet shrugged a bit as Yamato returned, carrying the cream and some gauze. "I guess it's just a miracle that I haven't burned myself before now, really." He'd insisted on cooking multiple times over the last three weeks, and Yamato had often had to remind him that it wasn't necessary. Taichi had always just grinned and told him it didn't matter. He _wanted_ to do it.

Carefully he smeared the cream on the two injured fingers, and wrapped a light wrapping of gauze around them both. As he finished, Taichi's soft voice murmured, "I thought _I_ was supposed to be taking care of you."

"How's that?" Yamato asked, not paying that much attention to what Taichi said as he looked up into those deep brown eyes. Had they ever shone quite like this before? Were they looking like that for real now, or was it just his imagination? Did it matter, when he saw it that way, and it was so beautiful no matter what? His eyes flicked briefly to Taichi's lips, half anticipating his reply, and half wondering what it would feel like to touch them with his own. To kiss him. _And I'd better think about what it would feel like to get a black eye from him, too. Because he would do it. And I'd deserve it._

"Better, thanks." Taichi looked back at him, then stepped away towards the kitchen. "Let me frost it and get you a slice before I get going, okay?" He didn't wait around for an answer, and Yamato's eyes narrowed just a touch. Had Taichi figured out what was going on in his mind somehow? It wasn't possible, but sometimes Taichi _did_ seem to know his thoughts almost as well as he himself did. Not to mention that Taichi appeared to have suddenly decided that he had to go _now_, when just minutes earlier he'd been wavering on just when he'd leave.

A few minutes later, the brunet reappeared, two saucers in his hands, with one slice of delicious looking chocolate frosted cake on each saucer. He handed over one of them to Yamato, who wasn't surprised to see that it was slightly larger than the other. Taichi always did things like that. It could get a bit annoying, but it was just _Taichi_.

The two of them sat in companionable silence, eating their cake. Yamato licked his lips, tasting hints of chocolate as he did so. _I must have it smeared all over myself. Great. Glad no one's around to see this._

Taichi chuckled softly as he eyed the smeared rock singer across from him. "You know, I could take a picture of you like this and no one would ever believe me."

"Don't even think about it." Yamato waggled a finger at him warningly, knowing that it didn't have quite the same effect when his face had chocolate over at least half of it. But it would do for a warning for Taichi, at least.

He froze where he sat, however, when the other leaned over and wiped the chocolate away with one finger, then licked the finger absolutely clean. A fiery blush exploded over his face, replacing the chocolate almost at once. How..._why_ had Taichi done that? Why was he even reacting like this? Why had that touch felt so unbelievably good?

He'd known for over a year that he wasn't as straight as he'd once thought he was. This just confirmed it, in a way it never had been before. He was also quite certain in this moment that Taichi was probably the most attractive person he'd seen his entire life, bar none. _I bet if Sora were here right now, she'd be laughing her head off because I finally figured it out._ It wasn't that big of a stretch, though. After all, Taichi had been the closest person to him since they'd been children. It wasn't _too_ much of a reach to think of him as something more, even if he didn't want to.

All too soon, Taichi stood up, smiling at him a little, determination all over him. "I'll check in with you in a few days, all right?" His smile was so warm, so caring. Yamato had no idea what to think of it, except that he wanted to keep it to himself, forever, and never let anyone else touch Taichi ever again. "And don't worry, your secret's safe with me."

"Thanks." That was the only thing Yamato could think of to say. It didn't really say anything he wanted to, but it was a word that could mean any one of a thousand things. That was all he needed right now, all that his mind could really wrap around. As Taichi turned to leave, Yamato felt all the strength draining out of him. "Have fun on your date."

Taichi shrugged, a grimace of disgust crossing his features. "I'm only going because I'd feel bad if I didn't. I haven't heard from him since he left. Not a letter, not a phone call or anything. I wasn't kidding when I said I forgot about it. Sometimes, I think you're luckier, being interested in girls and all." He waved a little casually. "See you around."

Yamato now knew what a puppet with all of its strings being cut felt like. He wanted to fall on the couch and just lay there without moving for the foreseeable future. But all he did was nod a little, with what felt like the most plastic and fake smile ever on his lips. "See you." Emptiness swirled around inside of him, a black hole that reached on forever. Why hadn't he _said_ something? It didn't matter what, just something. Anything.

"Yamato?" Taichi was looking back at him, worry having replaced disgust. "Are you all right?" The blond just nodded, not bothering to lift his head. He wasn't going to hold Taichi back from what he wanted to do. Just because _he_ liked Taichi as much, much more than a friend was no guarantee that Taichi felt the same way. He didn't want to think that he was in love with his best friend. It would hurt so much less when it all fell apart if he never said that to himself, no matter how much his heart sang with the knowledge. "If you say so..."

"I do." He would be strong. He would be firm. He wouldn't do anything that would get Taichi to stay. Taichi might not think he wanted this date, but that would change. The other guy might not have tried to get in touch, but it was quite obvious that he hadn't forgotten about Taichi. There was probably some reasonable explanation that just hadn't been explained yet.

As the door closed behind his brunet friend, Yamato tried to convince himself once more of something. There weren't tears trying to come down his face. He was a _guy_, guys didn't cry! It didn't matter that he was the Child of Friendship and was supposed to be a sensitive musician and probably had a bit more license to leak about the eyes than most of his gender. He just wasn't _crying_, and there wasn't anyone who could convince him otherwise.

_He's going to be in love._ Yamato knew it as if it had been written in stone in front of him. _They'll have their date, and everything will just **spark** in the right way, and Taichi will be glad he went, and didn't stick around here._ As for he himself, he would find someone else, once he got over this silly crush on his best friend. Someone nice, someone who could like him as a boyfriend, not like Taichi, who still believed he was straight, no matter how close they were. Maybe Akira knew someone. Akira always seemed to know someone. Who knew, maybe he knew someone himself. He'd heard a few things from Mimi about that guy she went to school with, Michael, that led him to believe there was a reasonable chance he might be worth checking into romantically.

The sharp ringing of the telephone pulled him away from his thoughts, and he stared at the device for a few moments before realizing just what it was he was listening to. Who was going to call _him_? Taichi had fed the same story about his 'flu' to all of them, and he wasn't really expecting anyone to check up on him any time soon. He'd tried to get Taichi to convey that he just wasn't in the mood, and since he _was_ the most annoying patient that had ever breathed whenever he got so much as a hangnail, no one had seen anything amiss in the situation. Half-dazedly he picked the ringing annoyance up. "Hello?"

"Yamato!" It was Takeru. Well, if he'd expected anyone to call, it would've been his little brother. He sounded absolutely _thrilled_ to be talking to him too. If Yamato had really been sick, he would've wanted to strangle Takeru for being so healthy. "How are you feeling? Taichi told us that you had the flu. Why didn't you tell us? Mom could've made you some soup and helped you get better faster."

Yamato blinked a little, his thoughts feeling as if they were moving through thick sludge at Takeru's rapid-fire chatter. "I'm fine."

"You sound all right. You could've told me, though. I would've come to keep you company and give Taichi a break from your crabbiness!" Takeru almost seemed to be pouting, which was a good trick when his brother couldn't see him. "So what's wrong? Are you still sick?"

How could Takeru know there was something wrong with him when they were just on the phone with each other? Was it some secret little brother power? He'd have to ask some of his friends who were younger brothers if they had anything like that, and how to get rid of it if they did. "No, I'm better. Really, I am."

"You'd better be. If I find out you're lying to me, I've got a few fangirls who'd like to come take care of you." He was going to find out who thought fangirls were his worst nightmare and hurt them. After he hurt his brother for doing that to him. "So, did you hear who Taichi has a date with tonight?"

Yamato groaned inwardly. How could Takeru pinpoint the very _worst_ thing to talk to him about in the first five minutes of a conversation? Little brothers _had_ to have some kind of creepy power to do that. He almost wished he had an older brother, so he could do that to him. "No. Who is it?"

"Kudo Ichiro, the soccer player!" Takeru breathed the two words out as if they held answers to questions of life, the universe, and just about everything else. "And Taichi tried to tell him no!"

Yamato shrugged, working to get himself comfortable on the couch. "I'm sure that they'll get along just fine once they spend some time together." Besides, Taichi had probably just tried to brush the date off to try and take care of him. It didn't mean much, he told his suddenly jumping insides.

"Yamato, don't you get it?" He could see the laser-like gleam of Takeru's eyes glaring at him in his imagination. "Taichi tried to tell him that he didn't want to go!"

"He told _me_ that he forgot." Yamato wouldn't let Takeru get his hopes up. They were down, and they were going to stay that way, no matter what. Hope was Takeru's province, not his.

The other blond groaned deeply into the phone. "Aren't you going to try and stop him or something?"

"Takeru, Taichi's a big boy. He can make up his own mind about what he wants to do."

Takeru's voice dropped down a little bit, as if trying to hide something from someone. "Even when you like him?"

Little brothers quite obviously _did_ have special powers. He wondered if they'd still work if he strangled Takeru. It might be interesting to try and find out. "He doesn't like me like that, Takeru." The last thing he needed was a matchmaking sibling.

The incredulous snort wasn't that much of a surprise to hear. "You're joking, right? He's crazy about you!" He wondered where Takeru got notions like that. Maybe from Miyako or Sora? Mimi was, amazingly, a bit too sensible for that. She'd never really had the urge to go poking into other people's love lives. That was more or less reserved for the two Chosen of Love.

"He's not." Yamato hated sounding as if he were brain-dead or something, but that was really how he felt at the moment. His thoughts just didn't want to _think_. That ache inside hadn't faded at all since the moment the door had closed behind Taichi, and Takeru's protestations weren't making things any better. "Takeru, just because you're in love doesn't mean the whole world is."

A sharp squeak echoed down the phone line. "You're in _love_ with him?"

Oh, great. Just what he didn't need, a jumping to conclusions Takeru. The fact the conclusions could be right was irrelevant. "That's not what I meant!" How was he going to get out of _this_? "Takeru, I'm still not feeling all that good. I think I'm going to take a nap. It was nice talking to you."

"You have to tell him, Yamato," Takeru told him sharply. "He thinks you're _straight_!" Yes, Yamato was quite aware of that. It was part of the problem. "He's not going to tell you how he feels as long as he thinks that!"

Yamato closed his eyes and sighed deeply, anger and aggression rising in his blood. "Takeru. I'm going to take a nap, and I don't think we need to talk about this again."

"Yamato..." Takeru sighed deeply. Ever since he and Mimi had started to go out, he'd been nagging his brother to find someone. He hadn't ever been this specific before, though. "All right, don't listen to me." That was fine. Yamato had no intentions of listening to him whatsoever.

"He's just a friend, Takeru, that's all, really. I'm all right with that."

The other snorted once more. Yamato was so very tired of that. "That's because you're not willing to try for more. I'll talk to you later, big brother."

That was the last straw. "I've had him over here for the past three weeks, Takeru! I think I'd know if he did! Just because _I_ was overprotective of you doesn't mean _you_ can start trying to run my life!" He knew it was immature and silly, but Yamato slammed the phone down anyway, setting the answering machine to catch it if it rang again. He wanted to sleep, and to forget everything that had been going on.

Especially to forget that Taichi was going out on a date with a rich, famous, gorgeous professional soccer star who had a reputation of 'loving and leaving' at least three or four people in the course of a year.

**

To Be Continued

**


	5. Looking Back In Time

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the canon characters who appear in this fanfic and am not writing this for any form of profit.  
**Series Title:** Moments Without You  
**Chapter Title:** Looking Back In Time  
**Timeline:** Approximately five years after the defeat of BelialVamdemon.   
**Romance:** Future Taichi x Yamato, mentions of Yamato x OC, Taichi x OC, Jyou x Sora, Ken x Daisuke, Mimi x Takeru  
**Notes:** I edited this chapter. It does not precisely require a reread, as all I did was smooth things out and tighten them up a little.  
**Summary:** Yamato hasn't been around for a while and Taichi wants to find out just why._

The farther Taichi found himself from the Ishida apartment, the more he wanted to turn around and go right back there. He wouldn't let himself, though. He _couldn't_ let himself, no matter how achingly wonderful it would be to do so. He'd made a commitment to Kudo Ichiro, and he wasn't going to back out of it, no matter how much he really wanted to.

It was more than just the upcoming date, too. He _had_ only promised to stay with Yamato until the little difficulty of his scalp had been dealt with, and now it had been. Sure, there was only a little covering of fuzz, but it would grow into a nice head of hair in no time, and if Yamato wanted to go out in public, there was always a wig or something like that. Yamato certainly hadn't _needed_ him there, not in the way he would have if the flu cover story had been true. But it had been nice being together for so long again.

No, nice wasn't the word for it. _Comfortable_ was much more accurate. He wasn't entirely certain it was right, but it felt better, anyway, if that were the right way to think about it. There simply _were_ no words to describe how he felt about spending so much time with the blond.

He wouldn't have been bothered by staying, he admitted that much at least. _Yamato_ probably would've been bothered by him, though. After all, his father was going to be returning to stay in just another day or two, and while two was almost perfect for the apartment, having a third around could get uncomfortable very quickly.

But they'd had so much fun. They'd spent three or four days a week in the Digital World, and spent the weekends there as well. Gabumon and Agumon didn't care what Yamato's head looked like. They'd had to be persuaded not to tell anyone, but it hadn't been very hard. The long days they'd passed under the skies of the other world had been the stuff dreams had been made of.

_I could do it again. And again. And again._ Digimon and the Digital World were better known than they had been a few years earlier, but it was still impossible for anyone but the Chosen, or someone they brought along with them, to go there. Most people seemed to be much more of the mind that since they couldn't go without a lot of aggravation, it was better just to ignore the place entirely. That was just fine as far as Taichi was concerned.

That was going to have to be a subject he avoided with Kudo tonight. The other _knew_ about Digimon, knew that Taichi was a Chosen, and that he'd been their leader. It had been a little hard to get around the information, given how they'd met.

It had been less than six months earlier, when he and Hikari had went to a pro soccer game that had been played in Tokyo proper. She'd bought the tickets for both of them, wanting to spend some time with her big brother while he had some time off from his college courses. The thought of seeing some of the greatest soccer players of the age going around the field had been far too tempting for him to pass up. It wasn't the World Cup, but it was close enough for Taichi's taste.

Being an unseasonably warm October, the skies had been a rich shade of blue, almost like a painting, and warm winds caressed them every now and then. Their seats had been some of the best in the arena, and Taichi had settled in intent on having one of the best times of his life.

All of his expectations had been fulfilled, as well. That was only the beginning, however. Close to the end, a soccer ball had been kicked by one of the players on the opposing team, flying almost directly towards Hikari. Taichi reacted completely and utterly without thinking, kicking the ball back into the field with a sharp upward movement.

"Thanks, Taichi!" Hikari gasped as she realized what had happened. The round of applause seemed more to be for his action than from what was going on in the field. Taichi tried not to feel as pleased as he did, but there was no getting around the fact that it had been a spectacular move.

"It wasn't anything," he murmured, looking away, cheeks flushed a little. Hikari just smiled a little at him and squeezed his hand reassuringly. Things had went on as normal until the game was over, and the players began to head off the field. The home team had won, and Taichi was just gathering his things to leave, thinking of trying to call Yamato and see what he was up to, when a voice spoke from behind him.

"That was an incredible kick you made. I didn't think anyone could do something like that as fast as you did."

Taichi turned to see the captain of the home team there, a tall, dark-haired young man he knew by reputation. There was a good chance most of Japan knew him by reputation, if not most of the rest of the world. "It wasn't that impressive, really," Taichi brushed it away the best he could. Ken could've probably done it better, and let it get closer safely as well. He'd just gotten lucky. If it had been someone else at the risk of being hurt, he might not have reacted as quickly. With it being Hikari, he was certain not to let any harm come to her that he could avoid. He wished that their Digimon could have come with them that day, but too many people would still freak out at the very thought of them being around, much less actually seeing them. Better safe than sorry.

"How long have you played soccer?" Kudo Ichiro asked. He was to professional soccer what Ken had been to elementary school soccer, and the person that Ken himself was compared most to when people imagined what the younger Chosen might possibly grow up to be like. Taichi couldn't remember how many games he'd watched on television with the young captain leading his team to victory. Maybe he could get a couple of autographs. Daisuke would _flip_ for the chance of getting one, and so would Sora.

"Since I was in elementary school. I've always been into it," Taichi replied, hyper sensitive to the other's presence. Kudo had been one of the first professional athletes to openly acknowledge that he preferred men and women both, paving the way for others to slowly begin to take more pride in their sexuality. Taichi had a lot to look up to him for, and that was just the beginning.

Kudo nodded slightly, smiling some. Just the sight of that sent thrills and chills down Taichi's spine like no one ever had before. "You've got some really impressive moves. Have you thought about going professional?"

"Once or twice, but I don't know if I'm good enough," Taichi replied, amazed he was still able to speak coherently with a celebrity talking to him. Maybe he'd had some of his awe of them worn off by kind of being one himself, or hanging out with Ken and Yamato like he did. They weren't exactly on Kudo's level, but it must have helped him. He couldn't think of any other explanations, not that he was trying to at the moment. He couldn't think of much else other than the fact Kudo was gorgeous and standing so very close to him and _smiling_ at him. "I'm still not sure what it is I want to do. There are so many options."

"I know how you feel," Kudo nodded quietly, then looked around as if checking for reporters or fans before he said what else was on his mind. "I know this is a little forward of me, but it's been a while since I just talked to someone." He shrugged briefly, and Taichi wondered just what he was thinking about. "Would you mind having a cup of coffee with me sometime?"

Taichi managed not to drop his jaw visibly. He couldn't possibly have heard that correctly. It was just a little too much like some of his dreams or a fairy tale. Well, maybe not a fairy tale. But some of his dreams, absolutely. The ones he didn't tell anyone, not even Agumon or Hikari or Yamato. "Excuse me, I don't mean to be rude, but do you mean that?" He hated even the _appearance_ of being rude, but he had to be certain. If this was a joke or a dream or he'd mistaken those words, he wanted to know about it ahead of time.

Kudo only smiled, as if he'd been expecting that kind of a response. "Of course I am. I've got to go right now, as much as I'd like to stay and talk. But I'm free in about three days, if you are."

Taichi ran the rest of his week and what he could think of concerning the next week through his mind. There was free time. He could do this. He'd have to rearrange a few things, but it would be worth it. He could have _coffee_ with a soccer star! He shifted around briefly. "I think I might be." He looked around briefly; he needed to find something he could write his number down on. "Hikari, you wouldn't have some kind of paper, would you?"

"Don't worry, I've got it," Kudo said smoothly, extending a small card and a pen. Taichi blinked slightly, then wrote his name and number down on the card. "I keep those around in case I run into people who want an autograph and don't happen to have something for me to sign."

Oh. Well, that made sense. Ken had thought about doing something of the same once word got out about how instrumental he'd really been in saving the world. Most of the time, people brought things for him to sign regardless, so he hadn't ever bothered. He handed the pen and card back to Kudo, then straightened up some. "I'm Yagami Taichi, and it's a real pleasure to meet you."

"The pleasure is _all_ mine, I assure you," Kudo bowed slightly, and Taichi returned it at once. He was going to have to do something incredibly _good_ for Hikari for this! It was all due to her. Maybe he could see what kind of courses for photography were available at his college? She would be looking for that kind of thing in a very short while, and after this, he wanted to be certain she got some kind of really awesome reward. "I'll call and see when you're free. I don't have much else to do for about a month now that this game's over with."

Taichi nodded, shifting a little more. He didn't know if this was something that you could really call a date, but it was close enough to suit him. He didn't intend on calling it one out loud, since he had no idea of what Kudo wanted to call it, of course.

He'd refused to wait breathlessly by the phone until it rang, and spent some of his spare time going over his lessons and trying to figure out just what it was he really wanted to do with his life. Teaching was looking more and more attractive, especially teaching kids how to play soccer. On the other hand, the government and diplomacy angle had a certain appeal. He'd been taking mostly general classes for the last year, trying to make his decision, and he knew he'd have to do it soon. He could only delay things for so long, after all.

He'd been deep in thought about it when the phone had finally rung, to the point that he didn't even hear it. It had taken Hikari, who had been visiting him with the hopes of skipping dinner with their parents and possibly spending a few hours with their partners, whacking him upside the head with the portable handset to get him to take the call.

"Taichi," Kudo's voice came out of the phone, very much amused. "I hope you didn't forget about me."

Taichi fidgeted as he realized he almost _had_ forgotten meeting the superstar in the days since it had happened. "Of course not!" But he wasn't going to let Kudo know that. That would be stupid, and while Taichi was many things, he wasn't _that_ dumb. "I've just had so much on my mind with college, that's all."

"I know how that is," Kudo replied soothingly. He was really only a few years older than Taichi himself, and had recently finished college, or so the newspapers all said. "You should really take a little time off from that. I'm free tomorrow afternoon for that coffee if you'd still like to go."

"Of course I would," Taichi replied. He hoped he didn't sound as _hopeful_ as he thought he did. He had to maintain his cool, no matter what. He was going to make a good impression on this guy. Even if he didn't want to _date_ Taichi, being his friend could be a big help for anything Taichi wanted to do in the future, as well as for several of his friends. Daisuke had squealed when he'd heard who they had met at the game, and pouted because he hadn't been invited. "What time tomorrow?"

"I was thinking sometime in the afternoon. Would two o'clock be good for you?"

Taichi ran his schedule over in his head and nodded quickly. "That would be great. I don't have anything I really have to do after noon anyway."

"Where would you like to meet me at? I'm not sure if you know the coffee shop I'm thinking about, so we could meet somewhere and go from there? If that's all right with you, of course." Taichi couldn't remember the last time he'd met someone this polite. Well, there was always Yamato, of course...but that was so very different. They were best friends. This was a guy. A really good looking guy with nearly impeccable manners and a lot of charm.

"How about at the Ai Mart?" He hoped that would be somewhere along the way to wherever Kudo wanted to go. Maybe Miyako or one of her sisters would be there to talk while he waited. It would help him relax a little before this date, encounter, or whatever.

"I don't know where that is," Kudo answered thoughtfully. "But I think I just had a better idea. Give me your address and I'll come by your place tomorrow afternoon. We can either catch a train over there, or walk."

That wasn't all that bad. If he could talk Hikari into spending the night, then he would have Agumon, Tailmon, and Hikari there to talk to and get himself relaxed so he wouldn't make a fool of himself once Kudo got there. "Sounds good to me." He gave the address, repeating it once or twice as necessary for Kudo to write it down. "I'll see you tomorrow, then."

"I can hardly wait. Good-bye."

The connection clicked off, and Taichi turned his own phone off, a stupid grin spreading all across his face.

"So, what's it feel like having a date with one of the best soccer players on the planet?" Hikari asked from where she still stood in the doorway. He didn't even look up at her crossly. He felt too good for that right now.

"I could get _really_ used to it," was all he felt he needed to say.

By the time the next day had rolled around, Taichi was more than a little convinced that an entire colony of Antmon had nested inside of his stomach. He fidgeted and squirmed, and removed every clock in the house from where he could see them. They shifted back and forth from going too quickly to not moving quickly enough, and he wasn't going to put up with it. He even took his own watch off and tried not to look at anything that might show the time at all. As the hours ticked down to when Kudo was expected to arrive, he refused to even go near the windows. He was not going to stare out of them, he wasn't going to stare at the clock. He was just going to wait patiently for the soccer player to arrive.

When the clock struck two and there was a knock at the door almost in that same moment, Taichi almost came clean out of his skin. Agumon stared at his partner as if he were insane as the young man fell flat on the floor, having tripped over his own feet in his excitement. "Are you all right, Taichi?" The Digimon hadn't ever seen Taichi act like that before, no matter who he'd dated.

"Yes, I'm fine." Taichi got up and brushed himself off, trying to make certain that he looked his best still. "I wish you could come with me this time, Agumon." Kudo hadn't specifically said the Digimon couldn't, but since the player wasn't one of those who yet had a Digimon of their own, Taichi didn't want his partner feeling lonely and left out by hanging around the two of them.

"It's all right. Hikari's going to take me back to the Digital World tonight and Gabumon and I are going to do some fishing together." He sounded so completely happy with that, and Taichi ached to join him. It had been quite a while since the four of them had relaxed by some digital pool, their stomachs full of food cooked the way only Yamato could do it, and without a single care in the world. _We'll do it again sometime_, he reassured himself. Even a mini-date like this couldn't compare to how good it felt just to spend time with Yamato. He kept underappreciating his best friend's effect on him. He wanted to tell the blond how much he enjoyed his company one day, but the time had never seemed right. He didn't even think he'd told him about this little encounter with Kudo. _Yamato wouldn't care, though._ Yamato knew how to play soccer, but where the professionals were concerned, they were just a blur of names. He'd told Taichi that more than once.

The knock on the door came again, and Taichi went to answer it. He smoothed his hair back the best he could one more time, then opened the door. The untameable spikes sprang back up almost as soon as his hand left them, but Kudo didn't seem to care as he nodded politely towards Taichi. He didn't step inside, but waited for Taichi to join him on the other side of the door.

"I almost wondered if I'd gotten the address wrong or something. I hope nothing was wrong." A faint smile touched his lips as Taichi shook his head. The brunet hoped deeply that he didn't have any kind of a mark showing that he'd fallen. How would, or _could_, he explain that he'd literally fallen over his own two feet because of this guy?

"No, I was just talking to Agumon for a second." He waved back at his Digimon, and caught a glimpse of Kudo's face as he turned back. The soccer player was staring at Agumon and Tailmon, who was held in Hikari's arms just then, with pure disgust written all across his face. "Is something wrong?" He'd never really seen someone looking like _that_ at any Digimon that wasn't about ready to rip their face off and chew out their entrails. For that matter, he hadn't looked like that when some Digimon _did_ want to do that to him.

Kudo smiled briefly. "Of course not. I'm just not used to those things. They can be pretty dangerous, you know." He laughed cheerfully and shook his head at his own words. "Of course you would know, since you fought the bad ones. That was a little silly of me."

"They're not things, they're our partners and some of our best friends," Taichi told him tartly. He could see this wasn't going to go anywhere fast if _this_ was his reaction to Digimon! Hikari was seldom stirred to anger, but he could see her eyes darkening and Tailmon's claws slowing protruding with every word that came out of Kudo's lips. He needed to defuse this, and fast.

"I know. Like I said, I'm just not used to them." Kudo's smile grew warmer and his tone turned soft and begging for forgiveness. "Maybe you can introduce me to some more of them. I just haven't had a chance to get to know any. I'm sure they're very nice once you get to know them."

Taichi nodded some in understanding. Digimon were something that a lot of people just _had_ to get used to before they'd really understand them. He'd seen people who started off terrified or worse, of Digimon and who had became quite good friends with them. There were even rumors that one or two people had fallen in love with Digimon, and some of them had once hated the creatures. He couldn't blame them. Some of them _were_ quite good looking, by anyone's standards. Angemon came to mind. He wasn't Taichi's _type_, but there was no doubting that he was extraordinarily attractive, and that was without ever seeing him with his helmet off. Presuming that it could be taken off, of course. He didn't know, and he'd never asked. "Well, let's go have that coffee."

"Of course," Kudo said. Taichi patted Agumon on the shoulder gently.

"You have a good time with Gabumon. Tell him I said hi and to let Yamato know I'm going to come see him whenever I get a chance," he told his partner. Agumon nodded, and Taichi glanced over at Hikari, who was still staring, and almost glaring, at Kudo. "I'll see you later, too." There was just enough of an edge to his tone to warn her not to jump to some silly conclusion and start attacking Kudo, or whatever it was that Tailmon had planned. The feline Digimon _had_ to have something planned. It was obvious in the way she stared at Kudo, her claws shimmering a little in the overhead light. Taichi didn't want to know. He _really_ didn't want to know.

It hadn't been that bad of a time, really, Taichi reflected as he showered in preparation for his real date with Kudo. As much fun as the two visits to the coffee house had been, however, they paled in comparison to any ten minutes he spent with any of his friends. _Kudo isn't a bad person_, he told himself. _So why don't I really want to go out with him now?_

**

To Be Continued

**


	6. Nervous Tension

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the canon characters who appear in this fanfic and am not writing this for any form of profit.  
**Series Title:** Moments Without You   
**Chapter Title:** Nervous Tension   
**Timeline:** Approximately five years after the defeat of BelialVamdemon.   
**Romance:** Future Taichi x Yamato, mentions of Yamato x OC, Taichi x OC, Jyou x Sora, Ken x Daisuke, Mimi x Takeru   
**Notes:** I edited this chapter. It does not precisely require a reread, as all I did was smooth things out and tighten them up a little.   
**Summary:** Yamato hasn't been around for a while and Taichi wants to find out just why._

By the time Kudo came knocking at the door, Taichi had done his best to put his doubts behind him. There wasn't anything to them. They were only the worries and concerns of someone about to go on a first date with someone attractive, charismatic, and appealing, and he knew that he himself wasn't any of those things. What could Kudo possibly see in him? Granted, he wasn't that bad of a soccer player, and he did have some kind of small fame, and he wasn't a total troll in the looks department. But Kudo could, and did, have the entire world of sports, if not the entire world period, of people to choose from to date. So if things didn't work out with him and Taichi, he could pick up someone new before the night was over if he wanted to. 

Whereas for Taichi's part, it wasn't exactly easy for him to find someone that he liked well enough to want to date. Those of his friends who weren't already dating someone else just didn't appeal to him in that way, and he knew that they thought the same about him. It wouldn't exactly be a disaster if this didn't work out, but it would cut off at least one more prospect from his mental list. 

He told himself that, and any variation on it that he could think up, over and over again. Maybe they just weren't hitting it off the way he hoped they would be, and all of his bad feelings were his subconscious trying to tell him that, giving him what advance warning that they could. It was one of the few scenarios that came to mind that made any kind of sense. 

_Yeah, so why can't I convince myself of that?_ He scowled at his reflection, which scowled right back at him. What he wanted to do was call Yamato and see if _he_ wanted to go somewhere instead of going out with the soccer legend. Everything he'd told himself about how Yamato would want to spend some more time with his dad and not with him after their three weeks of near constant company didn't seem to matter now. He firmly told his wants to back off and behave themselves from now on. He wasn't going to make that much of a jackass, a jerk, or a pest of himself. He was going to be a _good_ friend. Yamato wouldn't be interested in him even if he _did_ want to date guys. They were too close after everything they'd went through together. It just wouldn't _work_, and it was better if he put the entire thought out of his mind and concentrated on something else. Anything else. 

Just like his hormones, his wants paid him no attention. Pesky things. He didn't know why he kept them around. All they did was get in his way. But he had no idea of how to really get rid of them, even if they could be disposed of. Deep down, he didn't think he really wanted to. 

He ran a brush through his unruly hair one more time, then started for the door when it was knocked upon. _This isn't any kind of permanent thing. I know how often Kudo breaks up with people. This isn't even really a **boyfriend** thing._ It didn't seem to matter how many times he said things like this to himself. He just couldn't seem to convince himself of it. Obviously he was not meant to go into law of any kind if he couldn't do _that_. Even politics might be out of the question. 

It was just as well that Agumon wasn't here right now. Kudo had never seemed that comfortable with his partner, no matter what. That was yet another strike against him, and one that at least made a little more sense to Taichi's head and heart both. Anyone who didn't like his partner, or Digimon in general, wasn't really someone he wanted to hang out with that much. 

He opened the door, sliding a smile onto his face as he saw Kudo there. "Taichi," the older man grinned warmly at him. "I've missed you. Have you kept yourself busy?" Was he mistaking things, or did that sound condescending? It was hard for him to tell sometimes. It wasn't something he was used to hearing, but he almost thought…no, it was just his imagination. Kudo couldn't be that kind of person. 

"Yeah. I had to spend a while with one of my friends. He wasn't feeling all that well," Taichi replied, doing his best to push the entire question of condescension to the back of his mind. Warmth stirred deeply in his heart just as the thought of Yamato. _Back off!_ He mentally yelled at it, knowing that made no sense. The blond was his best friend. He didn't _need_ to be feeling oddly about him. Especially not when he was about ready to go out on his first real date with one of the superstars of his favorite sport. He wished he could think of something that he _wanted_ to think of, instead of unwanted images of Kudo and Yamato both wandering uninvited into his mind. The ones of Yamato were actually somewhat more interesting, as they involved the two of them doing things he knew they'd both enjoy, whereas the ones with Kudo were a little more questionable. 

"I'm glad he's feeling better, then," Kudo said, the smile deepening. "I would've hated for you to have to miss this date. I've got _so_ much planned for us." 

Taichi shifted a little. This was the first time he'd really heard anything about _plans_. He didn't exactly like the idea of someone making them without asking what he thought first. "You do?" 

"Of course." The other nodded firmly and raised one eyebrow just the tiniest bit. "You didn't think we were just going to do _nothing_, did you?" 

Taichi had to admit that it hadn't even crossed his mind what they might be up to. He'd been too busy taking care of and having fun with Yamato to even think about Kudo, after all. _So, you shouldn't be surprised that he made plans,_ he lectured himself. It wasn't as if he'd tried to take part in deciding what they were going to do. "So what are we going to be doing?" It would be fun, he was certain. Even if he wasn't used to it, it would be. It would _have_ to be. He'd try to have fun even if it wasn't something he'd normally do. It was only polite, wasn't it? 

"First, we're going to have dinner," Kudo said firmly. Something in his tone made Taichi almost expect to see him produce a notepad with a list on it. "I've reserved us a table at one of the best restaurants in town. Then there's a movie we're going to see. It's a new release, just opening up tonight. The theater's going to be packed, but I've made arrangements so we can get in early." 

Dinner and a movie. A typical kind of first date, really. It wasn't anything that should've made him nervous, but it did anyway, and he didn't have so much as one clue on why. _Yes, I do,_ some part of him whispered to another part. _Because as nice as this sounds, this isn't who you really want to be doing this with._

Again he ordered the rest of his mind to ignore that. He wondered if he should start keeping track, just for the sake of curiosity. "That sounds nice. I hope I'm not under dressed for it." He glanced briefly down at his slacks and shirt. He hadn't really had any idea on what to wear, but he didn't _think_ he was going to embarrass himself all that much. He hoped not, at any rate. 

"You'll do just fine," Kudo reassured him after a quick glance up and down Taichi. The brunet wasn't entirely certain if he liked the gleam in his eyes, but he couldn't place why. Yet again he ignored it, though now a faint sense of unease had begun to clench in his stomach. "Now, let's get going. The dinner reservations are in just about twenty minutes, and that's probably how long it's going to take to get there with this kind of traffic." 

Taichi nodded and stepped out of the apartment, closing and locking the door behind himself. Kudo's arm slid into his own and the other began to walk away, almost forcing Taichi to walk with him or be dragged along. "Hey!" The brunet pulled back a little, or tried to at least. It wasn't all that easy with how much larger and stronger Kudo happened to be, but he managed it. "You don't have to do that!" 

Kudo flashed a smile at him and eased up. "I'm sorry. I've just been looking forward to this for a while." He pulled his arm out of Taichi's and bowed ever so slightly, just enough of an inclining of his head to make it visible. "I truly didn't mean to bother you." 

Taichi looked at him for a moment or two, then nodded. "It's all right." He started towards the elevator, with Kudo only a step or so ahead of him now. 

"My car's waiting outside," Kudo said as they waited for the elevator doors to open. "I'm sure you're going to love everything tonight, Taichi. I spent most of my spare time while I was gone planning it for you." 

_What?_ Taichi almost said the word out loud, but managed to confine himself just to a startled nod. No one had ever done that for him, not that he could remember anyway, not even Yamato. It was a little romantic, really. 

No, he corrected himself almost at once as the doors opened and they stepped inside. It was a _lot_ romantic. Kudo had to like him more than he'd thought. His reputation spoke against it, but there was a first time for everything, wasn't there? 

He didn't have much time to keep thinking about it, as the elevator reached the bottom floor and they stepped out. _Kudo said his car was waiting._ That was one change he wasn't certain if he liked or not just yet. They'd usually walked whenever they'd been out together, or taken the train. 

Maybe Kudo wanted to do something a little more special since this was a real date and not just talking at the coffee shop? Taichi mentally shrugged. He hadn't really dated too many times, much less with someone like this. It had been hard enough just figuring out what to wear, and it didn't matter how much Kudo reassured him. He had a feeling he wasn't going to fit in at the restaurant. At least no one would be able to _see_ him while they were at the theater, or so he fondly hoped. 

"Here we are," Kudo said. He tugged Taichi over to a long stretch limousine that was parked by the side of the road, a chauffeur waiting beside it, quiet as a whisper. As soon as they were a few steps away, the driver leaped into action, opening the door and waiting for them to get in. "Go on, Taichi." He smiled brilliantly. "It won't bite." 

"I sure hope not," Taichi muttered, casting a glance at the car. That was not what had first crossed his mind when he'd heard Kudo mention his vehicle. _I thought it would be something...small._ One of those quick little things, probably a bright red, that could get up to illegal speeds illegally quickly. That seemed to be much more Kudo's style than something like this. 

He squirmed his way inside and settled down to wait for Kudo. The wait wasn't all that long, as the other sat beside him only a moment or two later. The door was closed briskly, and the driver got in. In moments, they were on their way. 

The interior of the limousine was everything that every movie and television show Taichi had ever seen showing one had promised and then some. The cushions were soft as clouds under his touch, and there was even a small refrigerator in one corner, as well as a television and a DVD player built into one side. The windows were smoked, allowing no one to see in or out, giving them complete privacy. There didn't even seem to be a way to contact the driver, though there probably had to be. It was just concealed out of sight, he guessed. Maybe a hidden phone? 

_It's like we're in our own little world back here._ Taichi glanced around a little, his gaze skimming across Kudo. The other was looking at him, a faint smile teasing his lips. 

"You've never seen the inside of a limousine, have you?" he asked Taichi, who shook his head mutely. "This one has a lot of surprises built into it. I'm not even sure myself if I know all of them. This was a birthday present." 

"From who?" Taichi asked without thinking about it that much. He didn't know any one who could drop down the cash for something like this and not be put in debt for at least a year. Even Ken would have problems doing that, and he'd been saving every scrap of spare change he had for years! 

Kudo leaned back, a thoughtful frown appearing. "I can't remember offhand. I think I might've been dating them at the time. Or maybe it was a cousin of mine." He shrugged. "It doesn't really matter all that much, does it?" 

"I guess not," Taichi said softly. He looked towards the window again, missing the sight of people going everywhere in the streets. It really was like a miniature world in there, made up of just the two of them. A thin trickle of sweat slid down his back, and he tried to ignore it. He didn't succeed all that well. 

"Would you like me to turn the radio on?" Kudo said after a few moments, the faintest hints of awkwardness in his voice. Taichi blinked a moment; he'd almost expected the other to start making passes at him that he didn't want, not to ask something that completely innocent. 

Well, why not? "Sure. Anything's good, really," he replied. He didn't have any real musical preferences, though he'd noticed that most of the ones he tended to like were those done by Yamato and his band. _Yeah, like that's a big surprise._

Almost as if it had been pulled out of his mind, he heard Yamato's voice pouring out of the speakers moments later. He blinked and stared. Talk about some point of timing! This was one of the Teenage Wolves' biggest hits, something Yamato had written himself. Taichi found himself smiling a little. _I keep wondering who he meant and he never will tell me._ The lyrics seemed to hint at the Digital World, but never clearly enough for him to be certain. He was really going to have to put in some time working it out, or bugging Yamato until the blond spilled the beans. That shouldn't take too long. Yamato had vulnerabilities only Taichi knew about. And if he still couldn't do it, he would recruit help. Takeru would love any chance he could get to pester his big brother. 

"Let's find something else," Kudo began to reach to change the station, and Taichi grabbed his arm as quickly as he could, shaking his head. "Taichi?" 

"I love this song," he said, looking at the older man. "It's one of my favorites." He frowned just the tiniest bit. "You did know that Ishida Yamato's my best friend, right?" He waved a hand towards the radio. "That's him and his band." 

"Ah." Kudo frowned himself, but only for a moment, replacing it with a dazzling smile. "I'd heard something about that, but I didn't pay that much attention to it. I've been busy, you know." 

_Yes, and that's why I haven't heard from you since you left._ Taichi didn't really care all that much about whether he got a phone call or not. Especially since it was obvious that Kudo had a reason why he hadn't: preparing all of this in his spare time, just like he'd said. 

Taichi shook his head slightly to himself, and started to pay more attention to the song. It had really been too long since he'd had the chance to listen to his copy of their CD, what with having spent all that time taking care of Yamato himself. Of course if he had to choose, he would've chosen Yamato every time. The CD wasn't going anywhere, after all. 

As the song came to an end, the announcer's voice came on in it's place. "And that was _Lift Me Up_, by the Teenage Wolves, played by special request." 

Before anything else could be heard, Kudo switched the channel, skimming around until he found some classical music playing that had to have been composed back in the stone age. He smiled briefly at Taichi. "I hope you don't mind, but I've never really had that much of a taste for modern music. It's all so loud, and I've got sensitive hearing." 

Taichi just shook his head a little, not wanting to cause a problem about it. It was only music, after all. _Only music?_ He could almost hear Yamato's voice in his mind screeching at the very thought of it. He tried to ignore it; they were almost at the restaurant anyway, or so he guessed from how long they'd been driving. He could live with this for a while. 

"So what have you been doing for the last few weeks?" Kudo asked after what felt like just shy of an eternity. "Other than taking care of that friend of yours, of course." 

Taichi shrugged casually. He didn't see that it was much of Kudo's business. But the other was probably just trying to make polite conversation until they got to the resturant, so it wouldn't do any harm to answer him. "Not much else. Yamato had a pretty bad case of the flu so I stuck around until he was over it." The standard lie came easily to his lips after every time he'd said it to any of his friends. "Didn't want him losing his voice, after all." 

Kudo nodded. "Of course. What else could he earn his living with, after all?" 

There was a hint of something in his tone that set Taichi's fists to clenching. "You never know. He can do a lot more than that." Taichi kept his voice as calm as he could. Kudo was getting more than a little on his nerves with that attitude. First he couldn't stand Digimon and now he was insulting Yamato, even indirectly? If this was the kind of person he was underneath the glamor, Taichi could find a lot better things to do with his time. He'd heard there were some interesting slug trails in the woods he could follow. 

"I'm sure he can," Kudo smiled at him, the kind of smile that lit up everything around him with how brilliant it was. It looked just a little too practiced to be real. "I don't know him like you do, after all." 

Whatever reply Taichi had in mind was cut off as the limousine came to a quiet stop. Kudo's lips curved into a smile once more. "Excellent. We're here." 

The door swung open, and Kudo stepped out, reaching in a moment later to hold his hand out to Taichi. The brunet eyed it for a moment, then pushed his way out carefully on his own. "Thanks, but I can manage," he said as he stood up straight. He knew the other was just trying to be polite, but he didn't want Kudo getting any kind of ideas that he shouldn't be. _I think I'm screwing this all up._ He couldn't bring himself to be that upset about it, not after that crack about Yamato. 

He glanced at the restaurant for a moment, trying to think if he'd ever been in there before. The name wasn't familiar at all, and he wasn't all that certain if he'd even been in this neighborhood before, no matter how close it seemed to be to his apartment. "Is this place new?" He didn't think he remembered it even being here when he'd checked the area out before moving in. 

"Yes, it opened up just a couple of months ago. But it's acquired quite a reputation since then," Kudo told him, gesturing for Taichi to follow him as he headed for the door. 

Taichi walked along, thinking back quickly. There had been some building and work going on here, he remembered that. He'd been so busy with his schoolwork, and then Yamato, that he hadn't paid enough attention to it to realize what it was. _Don't make that a habit,_ a deep part of himself whispered. Not knowing everything, or at least a majority, of what was going on around him could be dangerous. 

_You've been reading too many bad novels,_ he lectured himself as Kudo held the door open for him. He abandoned whatever else that line of thought might've led him to as he entered the restaurant for the first time and found himself surrounded by luxury the likes of which he'd never dreamed of before. The floor was covered by a rich blue carpet with designs worked into it that appealed to the eye. Matching drapes hung over the windows, and each of the tables had at least one chandelier hanging over it. There were several tables scattered throughout the main area, but he caught sight of a series of doors on the far side that he guessed led to smaller, more intimate rooms for those who might want more privacy for their outing. 

"Mr. Kudo?" A very pretty brunette dressed in a crisp blue uniform with silver trim met them before they'd gotten three steps inside, bowing quickly and respectfully. "So glad to have you and Mr. Yagami with us tonight." 

"A pleasure to be here, Ms. Tanaka," Kudo replied, bowing ever so slightly back at her. "I trust that everything I requested is ready?" 

"Of course. If you'll follow me?" 

Taichi hesitated only for a moment before he started after Ms. Tanaka and Kudo. He hadn't been all that certain that Kudo had really _arranged_ things, but it was looking more and more as if he'd virtually plotted out this date the way Ken plotted out soccer strategies. As they were guided towards one of the private rooms, he wondered yet again what in the world he was doing here. 

**

To Be Continued

**


	7. What Must Be Said

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the canon characters who appear in this fanfic and am not writing this for any form of profit.  
**Series Title:** Moments Without You   
**Chapter Title:** What Must Be Said   
**Timeline:** Approximately five years after the defeat of BelialVamdemon.   
**Romance:** Future Taichi x Yamato, mentions of Yamato x OC, Taichi x OC, Jyou x Sora, Ken x Daisuke, Mimi x Takeru   
**Notes:** I edited this chapter. It does not precisely require a reread, as all I did was smooth things out and tighten them up a little.   
**Summary:** Yamato hasn't been around for a while and Taichi wants to find out just why._

Ms. Tanaka closed the door behind her as she left, having promised to be back with their drinks in a few minutes. Taichi fiddled with the menu a little, almost expecting Kudo to tell him that he'd already decided what they were going to have for dinner. Instead, the older man just started to look through his own menu, pointing out which things looked particularly good that night. 

"Yeah, I guess," Taichi murmured agreement, though he wasn't really paying that much attention to what Kudo had said. He stared down at the menu intensely, trying to decide which of the items on it might not sit in his stomach like a lead weight that night. None of it seemed to fit his particular mood at the moment. 

"I don't think you're paying attention to anything I've been saying," Kudo laughed briefly as he folded his menu and leaned back in the chair, fixing Taichi with a calm look. "If something's wrong, let me know, and I'll try to fix it, Taichi, I promise." 

Taichi twitched briefly; he hadn't thought he was being so blatantly reluctant to be here. "No, nothing's really wrong." The fact that nothing was actually right was one he was going to keep to himself. It would only hurt Kudo's feelings, and he didn't want to do that. The sports star had done so much to make this a wonderful night out for them. He wasn't going to ruin it because he wasn't happy. It wasn't right. If it was anyone's fault, it was his own. He should've told Kudo at the outset that he wasn't as interested now as he had been when they'd made this date. 

Kudo eyed him over his glass of water thoughtfully, but said nothing else. Taichi was quite grateful; he didn't want to start trying to explain anything further. Nothing he could think of to say would help either of them at this point. Unfortunately, being silent wasn't going to do anything, either. 

_I'm going to break it off with him_, he decided as the door opened and Ms. Tanaka came back with their promised drinks. It wasn't the easiest decision to make, but it had to be the right one. Just thinking it to himself made him feel better by a huge margin, enough so that he ordered dinner without worrying too much about how he was going to feel afterwards. There was even a reasonable chance that he would be able to digest it. 

Once they were alone again, Kudo directed a penetrating look at Taichi. "So what have you really been up to while I've been gone? You can't have just been taking care of that sick friend of yours all this time." 

Taichi couldn't quite believe his ears. What kind of a question was that? Was it really any of Kudo's _business_ what he did when his boyfriend wasn't around? For that matter, could he even really call him his boyfriend when this was just a first date and he wasn't even thinking about there being a second? Even if they _had_ been dating regularly, that still didn't give Kudo any authority over him. He swirled his glass of water a little and looked at the other, finding the strength that had enabled him to glare into the eyes of monsters intending to kill him and still stay on his feet. This wasn't anywhere nearly that troublesome. "I stayed for three weeks with Yamato, because he needed my help. And because he's my friend." He didn't want to come out and say that Kudo was being rude. Kudo should know that already. 

"And?" Either he didn't know, or he didn't care. Taichi wasn't certain which one it was, and he was fast losing interest in figuring it out. 

"And what? What else do you expect?" This was not going well. He held onto his temper the best that he could. He knew when he was younger, he probably would've exploded all over the place for Kudo's questions, but this was in a public place, even if they were in a private room at the moment. You never knew who might be able to hear you, and he wouldn't have been surprised at all if there were some reporters around _somewhere_, eager and waiting to know what was going on with the two of them. He wasn't going to call them a couple, but the press might have different ideas. 

"What did you do with that _Digimon_ of yours?" Taichi wasn't sure what to call however Kudo sounded. Annoyed, angry, bitter...none of it covered the situation at all. What was _with_ him and Digimon? Couldn't he have just the slightest bit of respect for them? _If he can be this rude, then so can I._

"What do you have against Digimon? All you've ever said was was that you haven't had a chance to get to know them. You haven't even tried. Any time I wanted to bring Agumon along, you've had some kind of excuse on why he couldn't come. You haven't even wanted to stay at my place for a couple of hours so you could talk to him or anything. So what is up?" 

Kudo said nothing for a moment, then smiled that same familiar, award-winning smile that Taichi had seen shining out of television screens and from magazine covers. "Is it really that bad that I don't like them? You're who I like, Taichi. I don't have to like your little friend to like _you_. I just think I should know if you go to that place or not. It's bad enough when we go visiting other countries, with quarantines and such. But that's a whole different world. There's no clue what you could pick up there and bring back here. I'm just trying to look out for your best interests." 

Taichi's fingers closed a little more tightly around his water glass. "I can look out for my own best interests, thank you." He bit the words off as coldly as he could. It was time to say something, no matter how far the date had gotten. Kudo had stepped over lines that should never be stepped over. _Maybe this is why just about all of us who are dating anyone are dating other Chosen._ Jyou and Sora, Mimi and Takeru, Ken and Daisuke. They all seemed to have the right idea. "Kudo, I've had some fun the last few times we were together, and tonight hasn't been all that bad, either, what there's been of it so far. But I don't think we should see each other again, not like this. I wouldn't mind being your friend, I think. But that's about it." 

There was utter silence, and Taichi wondered if he'd spoken too soon or too much. When was he going to learn some sense of _timing_? He could think of a dozen other people who could've done this better. Most of them wouldn't have been in this situation in the first place, though. 

"Are you certain?" Kudo asked after several deathly quiet minutes. Taichi nodded, refusing to acknowledge the light twinge in his stomach at the question. He knew he had to be certain. Whether he was at the moment was a little up in the air. He didn't want to say it had anything to do with the Digimon question, but if Kudo pressed it, he'd lay it on the line. 

Once again, nothing was heard in the small room as Kudo digested what he'd been told. Taichi wished the soundproofing wasn't as good as it obviously was. He would've welcomed even the small sounds of other people eating and talking at the moment, so he would be more certain the rest of the world existed. He took a long drink of his water and wished the food would get there. He wanted this whole date to be over with. He wanted to be back at the Ishida apartment, laughing with Yamato over something silly, or in the Digital World with Agumon, exploring anywhere and everywhere that they possibly could. He wanted to be somewhere that wasn't here, with someone who was making no effort to understand a part of him, and who almost appeared to want to pretend that part of him didn't exist in the first place. 

"Would you object to finishing the date first? I'm not going to ask you to change your mind. I just want to give you the full experience." 

He tried not to visibly sag down in relief at those words. Spending another few hours with Kudo wasn't going to hurt him. He could stand a little extra time having some mindless fun. It might even relax him enough so he could talk to one of the others about this whole situation once it was all over with. After all, if it really did turn out that they were all best suited to other people with partners, then he had a much larger dating pool than he'd thought of at first. There _were_ over two hundred international Chosen, then there were all the kids that Oikawa had recruited, and a few of those new partnered non-Chosen who had sprouted up afterwards, and those were just the _humans_. Sure, Takeru's Angemon wasn't his type, but there were a lot of other Digimon that he could possibly consider. Why should he limit himself to one species, after all? 

_And then there's Yamato._ He ignored that familiar whisper. His hormones didn't know what they were talking about. They never did. He made a note to see if there was a Pidmon or a similiarly evolved Digimon interested in the near future. Or maybe he could just talk to someone else, one of the human Chosen. There were nearly limitless options, if he thought about it the right way. 

In the meantime, he answered Kudo with, "That's all right." Maybe there was something else that they could talk about while they were waiting for their food. He had no intentions of just letting things be quiet just because this wasn't going to be the first of many dates. After all, they were still going to be friends. Probably not _good_ friends, until and unless Kudo could overcome that dislike of Digimon, but that could be how they stayed friends. He would willingly teach him that they weren't whatever it was that Kudo had to be convinced they were. 

"So, what were _you_ doing while you were away?" Taichi finally asked. He wasn't sure if it mattered that much, but it would do something to get rid of that annoying silence in the room. He'd never been fond of the quiet in the first place, and now it just disturbed him even more. Besides, if Kudo could ask him questions like that, then Taichi felt more than justified in returning them. 

"I planned this whenever I had a free moment," Kudo replied calmly, and Taichi mentally winced. _Awkward_ didn't describe how he felt. It didn't even come close. It tried very hard, but it didn't stand a chance. 

He shifted around and wished he had X-ray vision so he could find out if their food would be there any time soon. He'd almost suspect the staff of trying to delay things, just to make things stretch out far beyond when they should. The aromas of all the different foods they had cooking were incredibly teasing to his sense of smell. He wondered how Yamato would like being here and if the food would stand up to the blond's standards. 

_I keep thinking about him._ He wasn't sure if it was because of all the time they'd spent with each other lately or if it was because of those other reasons, the ones he kept trying so hard not to think about. He knew all the excuses he would give himself. He'd went over them all at least twice a day. Sometimes he wondered if someone was trying to tell him something, with all the different ways Yamato crept into his mind. There had even been that song on the radio while they were coming here. If they were, he wished they'd be a little more direct about it. Getting to the point would make things so much simpler, and less stressful, than all of this dancing about. 

The door opening up pulled Taichi out of his thoughts, and his stomach set up a powerful roar as soon as he saw his food on the serving tray. It looked to be just what he'd ordered, and cooked just the way he liked it. _It won't be like what Yamato made._ This was getting ridiculous. 

"There you go." Ms. Tanaka settled the plates before them carefully. "Enjoy yourselves." She stepped out quickly and closed the door behind herself. Taichi flashed a quick smile at Kudo, then glanced at the food. Every sense he had was being teased and tantalized here, and he wondered if it would be possible to come back if he were with someone else. How much of this service was because he was with Kudo? What would happen if he came here with... 

"I hope you like what you ordered. I come here a lot, and it's always great," Kudo spoke up, starting on his own meal at the same time. "Tanaka's cousin runs the kitchen, and he really knows what he's doing. He was trained at one of the best culinary academies in Japan." 

Taichi nodded as he picked up his utensils, unable to think of anything in reply. He wondered if Kudo were trying in some subtle way to get him to want to come back here with him. He hated things like that. _What did I see in him?_ The answer to that came hard on the heels of the question itself: Kudo was a star in his favorite sport. Just because he was almost twenty didn't mean he was immune to hero worship. He was really going to have to get over that. There should be a lot more to a relationship than a shared sport. Perhaps a shared life would be better. 

_Or a shared soul?_ He wanted to smack himself. Jogress partners did not share souls. Just Digimon partners, briefly, and he wasn't even certain if that were the best way to describe the situation then. He turned his full attention to the food. He could worry about that later. 

He savored each taste as it slid down his throat, not wanting to eat too quickly. The manners his mother had managed to somehow drum into him demanded that, at least. He was being treated to this, and he was going to remain at least partially respectful because of that. Not to mention it would be rude to the cooks not to appreciate the work they'd put into the food he'd asked for. He sipped at his drink and nibbled a little more, noticing out of the corner of one eye that Kudo had already demolished virtually everything that had been served to him. 

_What did he do, starve himself the whole day?_ He didn't think he'd seen freshly hatched Digimon who ate that much in one sitting. 

"Do you want any more?" Kudo asked, looking over at Taichi. Taichi wondered just what he meant by that, since the question could've been about a refill of his plate, or to see if he, Kudo, could have what was left over. 

"Not really." He decided to keep his answer something that could answer either one easily. "When do we need to be there for the movie?" 

"We've still got some time. Don't rush yourself," Kudo said, following it up with that same grin. Taichi twitched a little; was there something wrong with the expression this time? Was he seeing things or did it look more like a smirk? 

_I'm supposed to be paranoid, I'm the leader, it's my job to look out for things like that_, he told himself. _But he's on a date with me. There's no reason for him to be smirking._ Still, if this had been anyone else smirking at one of his friends, Taichi knew he wouldn't have taken his eyes off of him for a moment, and would've been ready to strike if he had to. He suddenly missed Agumon's presence beside him deeply. 

He cleaned off the last of his rice, and considered if he wanted to ask for a refill on his drink when Ms. Tanaka came back in. He'd picked it more or less at random from the list on the menu, but there was something delicious about it that made him want another one. 

"Tell me about Digimon," Kudo said suddenly, and Taichi jerked his head up, not sure if he'd heard right. At his look, Kudo chuckled. "Tell me about them. Why do you like that place? Why do you like them? They're just so strange, and they've caused a lot of damage." 

"It wasn't their fault. People..._humans_ have caused a lot of damage, too!" Taichi replied quickly, heating up. Calling them _strange_? They weren't! "They're people too, just a different kind of people. Some of them are smarter than a lot of my classmates!" That was completely true. He knew of a Pidmon who could outsmart anyone he went to school with in chess, backgammon, and poker. Ken had played him to a draw in chess four times in a row. There had never been any human who had done _that_. Maybe he would be interested in spending some time together… 

Kudo nodded slightly and started to ask more questions. Taichi didn't have to think about most of them, just answered as quickly and honestly as he could. Everything he asked leaned in the direction of how destructive and dangerous Digimon could be, and questioning their trustworthiness and just how safe was it to have so many of them all over the world. 

"Really, Taichi, surely you can see there are people who shouldn't have creatures like that at their beck and call. It's just too risky. Where are we going to find the food to feed them all as well? Have you thought about that? Sure, they can keep going back to their world, but think of that: is it fair to let them use everything from both worlds? We need to take care of our own species first." 

Taichi winced; the things that Kudo said made some kind of sense, even if his gut screamed that he was wrong. "We don't know who decides who is a Chosen or not," he finally said, "but so far, we haven't really had any problems. It's almost like having one helps people be saner." He thought for a few moments, wanting to think of something that would help Kudo see the light. "If you want, I can really introduce you to Agumon." 

Kudo shook his head quickly. "No. Absolutely not." He stood up abruptly and looked at his watch. "We need to go. The movie starts soon." 

Taichi brought himself to his feet, confused and a little disturbed. Hadn't it been Kudo who had wanted to talk about Digimon in the first place? So why had he suddenly balked at the very idea of meeting Agumon properly? Something was so wrong it had begun to hurt, and hurt badly. That wasn't all that hurt, though. 

"I'm sorry, but I really think I want to go home instead," he said at last, and rubbed his head, a small, rueful smile on his lips. He wasn't really lying about that, either. His stomach felt a little strange, and there was an odd throbbing behind his eyes that wasn't exactly like any headache he'd ever had before. "I know we said we'd finish it, but..." 

Kudo didn't exactly sigh melodramatically, but he certainly gave off the air of wanting to. "I bought us the best seats in the house. I've been waiting to see this one with you." 

Taichi opened his mouth to say that he didn't feel well, then closed it again. Whatever was wrong with him was probably more due to the food, which _had_ been a little richer than he was used to, than anything else. He could walk it off, or wait it out. He had promised, after all. The movie was supposed to be a really good one too, and he'd wanted to see it since he'd seen the first previews. 

"But if you really don't want to, I can take you home." Kudo started towards the door, and Taichi held out a restraining hand. 

"Wait. We can go." He winced inside; he really felt more like laying down, but he just couldn't bring himself to say it, not after all of this. "I'm sorry I'm not..." Taichi trailed off, not certain of how to finish the sentence, but Kudo didn't need him to. 

"It's all right," he shook his head and smiled brilliantly, with no hint of whatever it had been that had so bothered Taichi before. Taichi was more certain than ever that whatever he'd thought he'd seen he'd either made up in his own head or misinterpreted entirely. "Come on, let's go." He opened the door and left. Taichi hesitated for a few seconds, then started after him. He didn't exactly drag his feet as Kudo took care of the bill, but he did notice somewhat vaguely that he wasn't moving as quickly as he was used to, and his head throbbed more and more with each passing moment. 

In a matter of minutes, they were both back in the limousine, and orders were given to start for the theater. Taichi leaned against the door and closed his eyes. He hadn't really thought that he was all that tired before, but now that they were here in the warmth of the darkened limousine, he found himself wanting to rest, just for a little while. He knew that he shouldn't. He needed to stay awake for the theater. He'd probably fall asleep once the opening credits were done, if he lasted that long, even if he dozed off here. 

"I'm going to try not to fall asleep," he murmured a little, hoping that Kudo heard him and wouldn't be upset. They'd skirted more than one argument tonight, and he didn't want to deal with any more. "If I do, wake me up when we get there, all right?" 

"Of course." Kudo patted him on the arm reassuringly. "Rest if you need to. You've had a long day, you know. It's nothing to be ashamed of." 

Taichi nodded, a warm and fuzzy fog settling on his mind as he did, and the limousine drove on into the evening. 

**

To Be Continued

**


	8. Clarifying Confusions

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the canon characters who appear in this fanfic and am not writing this for any form of profit.  
**Series Title:** Moments Without You   
**Chapter Title:** Clarifying Confusions   
**Timeline:** Approximately five years after the defeat of BelialVamdemon.   
**Romance:** Future Taichi x Yamato, mentions of Yamato x OC, Taichi x OC, Jyou x Sora, Ken x Daisuke, Mimi x Takeru   
**Notes:** To everyone who expressed the belief that Taichi would be raped or molested by Kudo: I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint you.   
**Summary:** Yamato hasn't been around for a while and Taichi wants to find out just why._

A sudden gust of fresh autumn air blew over Taichi, and he found himself blinking, pulled out a deeper sleep than he'd had in weeks. For a moment, he had no idea what was going on or where he was, then everything snapped into place. He had been in Kudo's limousine, and they had been on their way to a movie. He'd dozed off. 

None of that had any relation to where they were now, as far as he could see. He was being held in someone's arms, but it wasn't in the vaguely tender way he recalled being held by Yamato when they were eleven years old and facing Piemon head on. Frankly, seeing the clown Digimon would've been an improvement over what he _was_ looking at right then. 

Four other people, none of which he recognized, stood a little distance away. He wasn't sure if he didn't recognize them because his stomach was still queasy and out of sorts, because it was too dark to really see that much in the first place, or just because he'd never met them before. It was just as possible it was all three. It was even more possible he didn't care, because the moment he realized he _didn't_ know them, he knew he wanted out of there, as fast as he could get his feet to move. 

Unfortunately, he couldn't get them to move at all. He couldn't even manage the mildest of twitches. Something was going horribly wrong, and even the surge of adrenaline through his veins at that realization wasn't strong enough to get him on his feet. 

"Are you sure this is going to work out, Kudo?" One of them spoke, and the answer came from above Taichi's own head. 

"Yes. It's risky, but it's the only thing we can do. We _can't_ let those filthy monstrosities stay in this world. If we start with killing him, then they'll realize we're serious and _leave_." 

Taichi wondered if he was as pale as he felt when he realized not only was it Kudo who spoke, but it was also Kudo who held him so impersonally. Very few coherent thoughts other than that made their way through his mind just then, but one realization was crystalline: he had to get out of here, and the sooner, the better. 

"Then if we're going to do it, let's do it." One of the others spoke this time. Taichi didn't recognize any of their voices, other than Kudo himself, and he more and more didn't want to recognize _that_ one. Clear thinking appeared to be just a little out of his reach at the moment, beyond the burning desire to be anywhere but here. Yamato's apartment sounded the best. He wondered if there was a way he could get in touch with the blond. There should have been, but he couldn't remember what it was at the moment. 

"Right. He's going to be out of it for at least thirty minutes or so. The drug works great. We might have to get more of it if they don't co operate. Maybe if we take out Ichijouji or Motomiya next, they'll _really_ get the hint." Kudo's reply was so calm and matter of fact that Taichi's stomach turned: literally. All over Kudo, as it turned out. The soccer player swore foully and dropped Taichi on cold asphalt. The brunet rolled the best he could and found himself staring down at what was possibly a parking lot of some kind. 

"Are you sure about that, Kudo?" One of the others laughed, a cold and bitter sound, and Taichi was glad he didn't have the energy to smirk at the moment. He wanted to, though. He also wanted to smack Kudo as hard as he could right in the nose, preferably until said nose came out the other side. He made a mental note to do that as soon as he possibly could. Maybe not now, but he'd get to it, sooner or later. 

"Bastard." Kudo didn't sound even remotely pleasant now. Taichi _really_ wondered what he'd ever seen in him, and decided he was just as glad the other had dropped the pretense. He might have felt a little bad about not continuing to date him if he'd actually been a nice guy. "Come on, grab him before he starts to really wake up." 

"You'd better clean that off. You're not getting back into _my_ limo with that all over you." A third voice spoke. "And he's not going anywhere for a while yet. Even if he's waking up, he's not going to be able to move decently for a good hour or so." 

_That's right._ Taichi wished he could grin at them, and did it in his imagination if nowhere else. _Just keep talking._ With every moment, whatever it was that had kept him drowsy and out of it was burning out of his system, and his mind was getting clearer and clearer. 

He needed a D-Terminal or a laptop or something that could get him in touch with one of the others. He'd settle for a cell phone. He wished all over again that he'd been able to get his replaced after the last time it had been crunched up in a Digimon attack. Hikari had kept on telling him that she was going to get it replaced, but she'd never gotten around to it. 

At any rate, he didn't need one of his own, not right now. He just needed one, something he could use to make contact and get the blazes out of there. _Going to have to try something else. As soon as I can._ They weren't paying him that much attention, obviously trusting to the drug to keep him from moving too far. He twitched his leg muscles the best that he could and frowned to himself again. If he could move much more than a fast walk, he thought it would be a miracle. At least for right now. In five minutes, it might be different, but in five minutes, who knew what they could have done to him? 

"Are you sure that thing of his isn't going to be showing up?" The first person asked. Taichi couldn't see clearly enough to tell anything else about them, other than the fact they were male. All of them appeared to be, as far as he could tell at the moment. Not that it mattered, but if he really had to fight his way out of here, he didn't want to hesitate if he were faced with a woman. 

"Positive." Kudo's venomous tone curdled Taichi's stomach all over again. He wished he still had something in it to throw up on him again. "It wasn't even around when I picked him up. It's over in _that_ world." 

Footsteps sounded, growing nearer and nearer to Taichi, and a firm hand closed on the back of his neck. He was pulled to his feet and pushed into someone's arms, which closed around him firmly. He tried to drag his eyes open a little more, but to no avail. The drug wasn't burning off fast enough for that. 

"Good. I can't _wait_ to get rid of them all." This was the fourth person, the one who hadn't spoken until now. He was the one who had grabbed Taichi and shoved him at someone else. "Do we want to do it here?" 

"Why not? It's as good a place as any." Kudo spoke dismissively. Taichi fought to get his lips and voice going. There had to be time to save himself. He hadn't survived all of those Digimon just to be drugged and killed by a pack of idiots. 

"You…can't…" They weren't the most impressive words, but they were at least spoken. Taichi was willing to be satisfied with that much, for the moment. He took in more gulps of cool night air, and strained to get a better look around himself. He had to know where he was before he could call for anything like help. 

Amused laughter echoed from all of them. "Looks like he's awake after all. Did you screw up the dosage, Kudo?" That was the first speaker again. 

"Don't even try it, Arakaki," Kudo snapped back. "I wasn't the one who gave it to him anyway." 

Taichi wondered just who that had been? The lady at the restaurant? She had seemed to know Kudo, but that didn't mean she was in on this. But there were other things for him to worry about right now. 

"So, you're waking up." Kudo stepped closer to Taichi and reached out to lift his chin up. The first thing Taichi noticed when he dragged his eyes open enough to actually see the other was how _cold_ he looked now, as if he were suddenly a statue carved of ice. 

_I'm waking up? What was your first clue?_ Taichi really wished that he could say that. He settled for the best semi-confused and partially groggy glare that he could manage at the time, and made another mental note to catch up on his dirty looks to this group should the chance ever arise. "Stop…" That was all he managed to utter, and he cursed himself for it. He knew he could do more than that! His hands wouldn't even consider curling into fists, and his legs wouldn't have twitched if he'd offered them cash. Whatever he'd been given, it had some severe long-term effects. He wished Jyou were there with some kind of cure for it. 

Better yet, he wished Yamato, Agumon, and Gabumon would be there, with a cure for those smug faces in the forms of fists and flames. But he'd take what he could get, once he knew what that was. 

"Stop? When we're so close to getting what we want?" Kudo laughed, and it wasn't any of the gentle sounding laughs that Taichi had heard before. The brunet wanted to kick himself for falling for all of that charm. He hadn't been thinking with his brains at all. He wasn't sure what _had_ been doing his thinking, but he had his suspicions. "You must be crazy." 

Funny, that was very close to what Taichi had been thinking in the first place. He dredged up another few words from his slowly reviving lips. "What…are you doing?" He had a decent idea already, but if they could give him a little more information, that would be all to the good. 

"Killing you. Or isn't it obvious?" One of the others answered, and Taichi managed to get a good enough look towards him to see light gleaming off of a sharp knife. For a moment, he wondered why they would be using that instead of a gun or poison, then he decided not to worry about it at the moment. His continual noticing of such small things had to be a side effect of the drug. 

"Why?" At least he'd managed a single word without sounding half-dazed. He was confidant he'd be able to move in about half an hour or so. If he were still alive in half an hour, of course. 

Kudo snorted. "Wasn't it obvious with what I was telling you at dinner, Yagami? We want Digimon _off_ our world. They're beasts that don't belong here. We want our world back. All of the rest of the idiots who are 'bonded' to them can go back with them if they want. They shouldn't be here anyway. They like _animals_ like that better than _humans_!" 

Taichi closed his eyes and prayed to anything and everything that even remotely resembled a higher power. He didn't neglect the four Digital Gods in this, either. He didn't know if they were listening, but just in case, he preferred to have all of his bases covered. _Help me get out of this. They're crazy._ "How…is killing me…" He couldn't finish the question, but they understood what he was asking anyway. 

"Simple. You're the leader, or so you call yourself. When they can see how easily we took _you_ out, they'll know we mean business, and they'll all get out of here. No one will even know that we're the ones who did it." Kudo's smug voice made Taichi's fingers twitch and he fantasized briefly about punching that far too pretty face in. Perhaps breaking a couple of bones while he was at it. See how far Kudo's soccer career went after _that_. 

"They'll know you did it." It took Taichi a little concentration to speak without long pauses between the words, but it was worth it. The more he tried, the more he thought he could fight back the drug's effects on him. He was at least going to put up a fight when they killed him. He wasn't going to just lay down and let him slice him apart like sushi. 

He wanted to add a lot more to his statement, that Kudo would be the chief suspect, simply because they'd been seen together frequently that night, and people had known that they'd had a date that night as well. Their whole farce would fall apart in five minutes flat. 

"No, they won't. Because what I'm going to tell them is that we were kidnapped by my driver, who was part of a secret Digimon-hating sect, and were taken to an unknown location, where I was restrained and watched you being _tragically_ murdered." Kudo's eyes glinted darkly. "They'll never be able to pin anything on me." 

Taichi swore in that moment he would live, just to have the pure satisfaction of seeing Kudo behind bars for the rest of his natural life, or longer, if it were possible. 

"Now, that's enough chatter. Let's get down to business." Kudo motioned to the others. Two of them seized Taichi and pulled him away from Kudo, yanking his arms behind him. He was pushed back to the ground, a knee pressed into the center of his back, and his wrists were forced together. Rope began to be wound around them quite tightly and quickly, biting firmly into his skin. He began to wish he'd taken those judo classes that Ken had suggested a couple of years back. That could have made things a little more equal just now. 

He managed to roll just enough so he could get a look at Kudo and growled to see that he, also, was being tied up. It wasn't quite the same, since his bonds were looser and Taichi thought they could be dropped at any time, not like his own. They were just for show. Probably so he could 'get away' and run to the cops with a few markings to back up his story. 

Would they believe him? Would this actually be _bought_ by the authorities and the Chosen? He didn't want to think it would be. He wanted to think they would all be a lot smarter than that. But the evidence was going to be manipulated, and evidence was all they had to work with. 

_I have to get away._ Even if it was only for a few minutes, he had to get to a phone and call Yamato or Hikari. Even if he were caught after that, if he could tell them the truth, then it would at least be a _chance_. He wouldn't have just let them do this and get away with it. 

The question was on how to get away. He started struggling harder as the ones tying him up reached for his ankles and legs, kicking as hard as he could. Being a soccer player, that was a lot harder than most people: or it would have been if the drugs weren't still affecting him. 

"This one's a wiggler!" One of his captors laughed cruelly, and Taichi found he could move his elbow just the right way to slam into that one's face. With little else he could do, he did that, and the other howled in pain. Taichi wasn't much for violence against humans, but he was not loathe at all to admit that it had felt _good_ to fight back. 

_Now, if I can just get up!_ He threw himself to the far side of them with all of his slowly returning strength. None of them appeared to be taking his escape attempt all that seriously, and he suspected he knew why. When your prisoner was still at least a quarter drugged, why waste your effort trying to restrain them that much? 

But whatever they'd given him _had_ worn off sooner than they'd expected to, and it had been slowly burning off ever since. He couldn't figure out any sort of ratio for it, and he didn't care. He could talk and he could move now, and that was what he needed. He didn't necessarily have to completely outrun them. If he could just _outthink_ them, he could make it through safely. The question was being able to outthink them at all. With every breath of fresh air he took, his brain woke up more and more. There was a chance, at least. A chance was all he wanted or needed. 

He pushed himself against the ground as hard as he could, ignoring the way the world danced around him as it did. He didn't want to close his eyes, fearful that he'd collapse again if he did. But after a few seconds, he found he was much steadier on his feet. Their laughter sounded cruel and cold in his ears, Kudo's chief among it all, and somehow _that_ gave him even more strength, adrenaline and anger surging all through him. He pushed himself harder, and found with a measure of surprise that he was actually standing up, and he wasn't all that unsteady, either. 

"You don't think he's going to get away, do you?" One of the others spoke. Taichi thought it was the one Kudo had referred to as Arakaki. Not that he cared about their names, but it was something he could focus on, and that helped him focus more. 

"No, I don't. Let him stagger around. We could use a laugh before we finish him off." Kudo snorted. "You don't have anything to drink in that car of yours, do you, Abe?" 

The one who Taichi had elbowed growled, obviously still not pleased over Taichi's attack. "Even if I did, I wouldn't give you any right now, Kudo. This little bastard nearly broke my nose." 

_Damn. I wish I **had** broken it._ Taichi kept his eyes on them as he inched away. His eyes were nearly adjusted to the darkness now, and he was grateful that they hadn't bothered to gather near some lighted area. That could've played havoc with his sight just then. They'd probably decided on it for their benefit, not his, but he wasn't going to argue. There was too much else to do for that. 

"And that has what to do with you giving me a beer?" Kudo wanted to know. Taichi could see him moving closer to Abe. None of them were paying him that much attention, trusting to the drug to make certain he couldn't get too far until they were ready to deal with him. The other three were all watching Kudo and Abe, as far as he could tell. _What a bunch of idiots._

If he were going to be killed by these morons, he did hope that if he _hadn't_ been drugged to the teeth when he got there, they would have kept a better guard on him. He didn't want to die, but if it came down to it, he would prefer it to be at the hands of some group that had a marginal bit of sense, if only for the dignity and honor factors involved. 

_On the other hand, if they're trying to force all the Digimon back to the Digital World, nothing they do would be enough to make being killed by them anything less than stupid._

He glanced around quickly, trying to find something that would give him a clue on where he was. Kudo hadn't been very specific on which theater they were going to, not that Taichi was inclined to believe they were even close to one right now, after everything else that had happened. He could see lights off in every direction, but none seemed especially close to him. He was going to have to go with random chance, and hope that it helped him now as much as it had other times. 

With a quick breath or two to stoke himself with oxygen, he started off into the darkness. He moved slowly at first, knowing that he could feel a hand on his shoulder and look back into the grinning face of Kudo or one of his cronies at any moment. Before that, he was determined to make a phone call. 

He stumbled along for a minute or two before finding his steps were moving a little more smoothly. He didn't have enough medical knowledge to be able to figure out how long the drug would take to get fully out of his system, but he suspected it wouldn't be gone for a while yet. Sure, they'd misjudged it, but he was still suffering from the effects. 

If they did get him, and if they really did go after Ken or Daisuke next, he hoped he'd at least be able to give his friends enough warning so they would be able to put up a better fight than he had. But he wasn't ready to lay down for the knife just yet. 

He could still hear them yammering behind him, and as far as he could tell, none of them had tried to come after him yet. _Either they know something I don't, or they're just stupid._ He wasn't willing to say which one it was just yet. 

Running wasn't something he was up to quite just yet, even as he moved a little quicker. He would've classified it as something of a swift walk, just a short breath or two away from being a jog. Even so, he had to be careful not to trip over something, such as his own two feet. Every now and then his vision blurred and swam about, and he could hardly keep putting one foot in front of the other. But he kept going. That phone call shone in his mind, the need to tell someone what was going on and hope something good came from it. 

The sound of their voices fell away from behind him, and he hoped it was because he was far enough away not to hear them anymore. Other reasons occurred, but he did his best to ignore them for the moment, especially as he turned a corner, and saw a row of shops ahead of him. He didn't recognize any of them offhand, but what he did recognize was a pay phone. A smile bloomed across his entire face and he stumbled for it as quickly as he could manage. 

_Still be awake, Yamato, please! Please!_

**

To Be Continued

**


	9. To The Rescue

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the canon characters who appear in this fanfic and am not writing this for any form of profit.  
**Series Title:** Moments Without You   
**Chapter Title:** To The Rescue   
**Timeline:** Approximately five years after the defeat of BelialVamdemon.   
**Romance:** Future Taichi x Yamato, mentions of Yamato x OC, Taichi x OC, Jyou x Sora, Ken x Daisuke, Mimi x Takeru   
**Summary:** Yamato hasn't been around for a while and Taichi wants to find out just why._

Yamato snuggled against his pillow and tried not to hear the ringing of the telephone. He knew the machine would catch it, and he'd turned it down just enough so he wouldn't hear the message any callers left. It was probably just Takeru again, and probably chewing him out for not running right after Taichi and admitting his undying love. 

_Yeah,_ his thoughts fuzzily wandered. _Like Taichi would ever do anything but laugh himself stupid at the thought._

Something kept pulling him to being awake. The phone had stopped ringing, and he must not have turned the volume down as much as he'd thought, because he was certain he had heard someone's voice. It wasn't Takeru's, either. It sounded almost like Taichi's. 

_No. He's on his date._ Yamato reassured himself of that by opening his eyes just enough to look at the clock. It wasn't all that late, so Taichi couldn't be home from it yet. He blinked a little sleepily at the time, then yawned and sat up. So that was why he was actually awake. It wasn't the phone after all. It was the demanding and insistent call of nature. 

He wandered into the bathroom to deal with it, noticing absently the blinking red light on the answering machine. Yes, someone _had_ called. He decided to check it once he was done, just to answer the nagging breath of curiosity. If it _was_ Taichi, maybe listening to him be ecstatic about his date would put paid to these odd feelings that wanted to overwhelm him. 

Once everything had been taken care of, he headed back into the living room and checked to see just how many messages there were. _Three. I bet at least one is Takeru._ He had the first one replay and wished that he'd had someone to bet with, since it was indeed his younger brother. He rolled his eyes; Takeru rarely got this irritated with him. 

_Yes, and you haven't been this stubborn in a long time,_ he reminded himself in the next breath. He shook his head. Once he was feeling up to it, and had a much thicker head of hair than he did at the moment, he would explain everything to Takeru and convince him that things were just better the way they were. 

"Son, I'm sorry about this, but I'm not going to be home for another two days. I just received a new assignment. It's something I think I should talk to you about when I get the chance, so I hope you're in the mood when I get there. I'll call later. Bye." Yamato frowned a little more at the answering machine. His dad didn't always discuss his stories with him, unless they involved music or Digimon or something else that was in Yamato's field of interest. 

Well, he'd find out about that once his dad got home and they could talk this out. He started the third message, and froze where he stood, hearing Taichi's voice. Taichi's very _desperate_ voice. 

"Yamato, I…I guess you're asleep." Taichi paused for a few seconds. "I guess I can call Takeru or Daisuke or someone. If you're there, I'm in trouble. _Big_ trouble. Kudo's some kind of anti-Digimon nut, and he and his buddies are trying to kill me. I think…they're going to…" 

Then a click, and nothing more. The silence echoed around the apartment. Yamato stared at the machine for a few seconds, then exploded into action. He thanked his dad a thousand times over for getting a phone that had caller ID and wrote down the number that had appeared for Taichi's call. Then he dialed Koushirou, not caring if he woke the red-headed genius or not. 

"Yamato?" Koushirou apparently wasn't sleeping. At least he sounded alert. "What's up?" Yamato knew he wasn't in the habit of calling people without warning, and he could pick up on the sound of concern in Koushirou's voice right away. Good. He didn't want to be the only one worried. 

"I think Taichi's…no, I _know_ Taichi's in trouble. I need you to hunt down an address for me." Yamato's mind was kicking into high gear. If he could locate where Taichi had made the phone call from, then he could find Taichi. Once he found Taichi, anyone hurting him would regret it, in as many ways as Yamato could dream up. He would ask Ken for ideas if he had to. The former Kaiser would certainly be able to come up with a few. If he couldn't, Daisuke _certainly_ would. 

"What's going on?" Yamato couldn't see Koushirou, but he was certain he heard the click of laptop keys through the phone. 

"I got a phone call from him just now." The blond told the other just what had been said and then passed on the number. "Can you find out where that is?" 

"Sure. It shouldn't take me too long." The sound of keys being tapped came through even louder, and Yamato's fear eased a little with the knowledge that Koushirou was on the job. But he wasn't done yet. He thought as hard as he could; where had he put his D-Terminal? It had to be around there somewhere. He needed to let everyone else know what was going on, and the sooner the better. 

There it was! He snatched it up and started to type one-handed, sending the quickest message possible to Takeru, wanting him to go to the Digital World and find Agumon and Gabumon. He bared his teeth in a feral smirk. If these idiots thought that they could hurt one of the Chosen and get away with it, they were in for a very _nasty_ surprise. 

"Yamato?" Koushirou's voice broke into his pleasantly bloody thoughts, and he blinked a few times, trying to refocus. "Yamato, I've got the address." 

"What is it?" Yamato's fingers hovered over the keys of his D-Terminal again, so very _glad_ that they'd all managed to get one of these. It made communication so much easier. _Why didn't Taichi use his? Or maybe he didn't take it with him._ He had some questions for the brunette, and most of them were now going to be on the level of 'would you prefer to see these idiots ripped apart horizontally or vertically?' He was certain Gabumon and Agumon could do either one. 

Koushirou told it to him, and he added the location to the message for his brother. It would make it much easier if they all met up there instead of waiting for Takeru to bring their partners to him and _then_ go to the pay phone. 

Something else kicked into his mind as he sent the message, and he quickly checked the time of Taichi's call against the time on his watch. _Five minutes. I hope…_ "Thanks, Koushirou. How fast do you think you and Tentomon can get there?" 

"It will hardly take us any time at all. I suppose you want us to stay out of sight, though? If they're against all Digimon, they'll certainly harm Taichi if they see us there." 

"Right. Just get there and make certain he's still breathing when everyone else gets there." He hung up without waiting for a reply, then started sending out other e-mails, letting the rest of the team know what was going on. He suspected that most of them would get there before he would, and regretted once again not having Gabumon stay with him. _I'll fix that. Once we get this settled, he's not ever going back to the Digital World unless we're going together._ The same would go for Agumon and Taichi. This would _not_ happen ever again. 

Once he'd sent the messages, he grabbed for his jacket and headed for the door, a thousand hideous fates dancing in his mind to be unleashed on the ones who _dared_ to do this. He couldn't have told if his anger was because someone was daring to make an attempt on the life of a Chosen Child, one of his closest friends, the people who had sweated blood and tears for the salvation of two worlds, or because they were trying to kill Taichi. He didn't think it mattered. What mattered was making certain it didn't happen in the first place. 

He'd just managed to make it halfway down the street outside when the sound of great wings beating echoed all around. He looked up to see a glistening bird, feathers darkened by the night, but he knew that in the light of day, they would be a deep shade of red. _Of all the luck._ He didn't know if he meant it seriously or not, but the fact was that Takenouchi Sora was there. 

"Want a ride?" Sora peered over Birdramon's neck and reached a hand out for him. She was even prettier than she'd been when they'd dated five years earlier, though he wasn't really attracted to that prettiness now. They did, and always would, share a comfortable friendship however. 

Which was why he rolled his eyes and reached up for her hand. "What, did you think I was going to insist on running to Taichi's rescue all by myself or something? Of course I want a ride." The sooner he got there, the sooner he could unleash some of the pent up frustrations from the last three weeks. The sight of Taichi sprawled on his couch in the moonlight flashed through his mind, with the whisper under his thoughts that if these idiots got their way, he'd never see that again. That was _not_ to be allowed. 

Sora tugged and he pulled, and soon he was settled behind her on the bird Digimon. "We'll get there before they can do anything, Yamato." 

He only nodded, though his stomach was beginning to curdle a little at the thought of how time was just slipping away. _Was_ there time? Even calling for all the help he had would eat up precious moments. The way Taichi's call had ended sickened him even more. Had he just hung up, too worried over what else to do, since Yamato hadn't answered? Or had Kudo or one of his crew hung up for him? 

"Have you said anything to him yet?" Sora's question nudged it's way into his consciousness, overriding the fear for Taichi for a brief moment or two. 

"No." He closed his eyes, trying to think clearly, at least the best that he could right now. He hadn't bothered to put the hood of his jacket up. His fear over what the rest of his friends would think about his nearly hairless state paled into nonexistence next to what could happen to Taichi. Besides, this was _Sora_. She already knew his most personal secret, and had known it before he ever had. She wouldn't laugh at him. "But at least I've said something to _myself_ about it." 

She laughed briefly. "I guess that's a beginning." He knew she was right. He just hoped that it wasn't going to also be an ending. 

"So, how are you and Jyou doing?" He wanted to say something that didn't have anything to do with himself or Taichi while he had the chance. Birdramon's great beating wings were bringing them closer and closer to the area where Taichi was, and he could see some of the others circling around, keeping high enough so most people wouldn't be able to see them. He caught a glimpse of Daisuke and Ken, each held in their partner's respective arms, and made a note to see how things were doing with them, once all of this was over with. 

"I was on the phone with him when we got your message," Sora replied, a faint smile curving her lips. "Everything is going fine." She said nothing else, but he hadn't expected her to. The details of her love life were things that Sora liked to keep to herself, even when she was talking to an ex. Not that she had too many of those. 

_We should get some walkie-talkies or something. I don't think e-mailing each other with the D-Terminals is going to be the best way to keep up with each other._ Yamato glanced down at the streets below, trying to find some glimpse of Taichi. He had to be there _somewhere_. The question was where. If any of the others saw him first, more precious time could be lost trying to get the message to everyone else. 

The more moments slipped by without any sight of him, the worse the tension grew in Yamato. Taichi _had_ to be somewhere around there. It would have been easier to find him if he'd had his Digivice, but since that was reading as being back in his apartment, it wasn't much use. Yamato cursed to himself over and over. If only Taichi had _told_ him more about this Kudo person! He might have a chance at figuring out what he was doing. At the least, he would have told Taichi to keep his Digivice with him! Just because you were going out on a date with a non-Chosen didn't mean that you shouldn't keep it around! 

He tried to keep himself calm, but nothing was working. He had to find Taichi, had to make sure he was safe, had to _do something_! Just what he had to do he didn't know, but he suspected that it could involve fists. Or possibly tongues and lips. As long as Taichi was safe, all the rest of it didn't matter. 

"I think I see something!" Sora half-whispered and leaned forward to get a better look. Yamato leaned as well, staring into the darkness, and _wishing_ all over again that he had Gabumon and Agumon with him. Their noses could have picked up Taichi's scent no matter what, and they would already be there with him. This could have been over now, if it had happened at all, if they'd just _kept_ their partners around. 

For a moment or two, Yamato wasn't certain just what Sora was looking at. Then he saw it: two people, carrying a struggling third between them. And that third was Taichi. Yamato stared as much as he could, drinking in the sight, noticing all the bumps and bruises that Taichi had acquired. He smiled at the sight of them. _He's not making it easy for them._ He hadn't ever once entertained the notion that Taichi would. If they were planning to kill him, then it would be the hardest kill that had ever happened. He would make them _work_ for it. 

_That's only two. There have to be more._ Yamato doubted that _anyone_ would try to kill Taichi, even alone, with just two people. He didn't know Kudo on sight, but neither of those two struck him as being him. 

Sora confirmed it a moment later. "What's his name…Taichi's date…Kudo. He has to be around here somewhere too. He's not one of them." 

"Are you sure?" Yamato wanted to be positive. He'd ask for an identification card from them if he thought it would help. 

"I follow soccer, too, Yamato." She turned slightly to roll her eyes at him. "I'd recognize him if I saw him." 

He nodded, then pulled back enough to start typing on his D-Terminal. The rest of the group that he could see was busy trying to keep themselves from being seen while trying to watch for Taichi at the same time. He couldn't be certain if they'd even seen him now. 

While he worked, a soft alert sounded, and he checked to see an e-mail from Takeru there. Once he read it, he breathed a quick sigh of relief. "Takeru's here. He's got Gabumon and Agumon with him." 

"Good. Let's get to the ground and get everyone together." Sora started to guide Birdramon down, and Yamato kept on typing as quickly as he could, telling the rest of the group where to meet. He tried to catch whatever glimpses of Taichi that he could, not really wanting to let him out of his sight. _Everything they do to him, they're going to pay for._ If Taichi actually died… 

No. He didn't let himself think that. There was no way that it was going to happen. Taichi wouldn't even have to spend time in the hospital. He might have to rest at home for a while, and Yamato would be there the whole time, but he would _not_ be killed or hurt. No matter what. 

Moments later, everyone who had been in Odaiba that night had gathered in the darkness. One of the first things Yamato noticed was that Daisuke and Hikari both looked at least half as angry as he did, and there was a fury in Ken's usually gentle eyes that brought back memories of facing him as an enemy. Yamato found himself quite glad that this fury was directed at someone who wasn't him right now. 

"I can smell him!" Agumon declared, and was almost instantly shushed by Gabumon. The lizard Digimon glowered at his partner and pointed one set of stubby claws out into the shadows. "They're taking him that way!" 

Yamato nodded briefly. "You two can lead us right to him. But we need a way to be certain that they won't hurt him once they see us." 

Takeru and Hikari exchanged a grin, as did Patamon and Tailmon. "I think you can leave that to _us_, big brother." Takeru declared. Hikari nodded, then tossed the older blond something small. 

"What's this?" Yamato glanced down as it hit his hand, then grinned as he realized the answer to his own question. "Taichi's Digivice." 

"Right. I stopped by his place and got it before we came over here." Hikari said, a flash of a grin across her features. "I figured we might need it." 

"Good idea." Yamato nodded, then slid it into his pocket. 

"So, the rest of us stand there and look menacing?" Daisuke asked, his lips twitching just a little. Yamato shrugged. 

"If they try something that you can stop, do it." He didn't add that they should be certain not to hurt Taichi. They already knew not to do that. They, after all, were sane. 

He turned his attention back to Gabumon and Agumon. "To start with, see if you two can get his scent. I'll go with you, and the rest of you keep an eye on us from up there. The less they see at first, the better our chances are." 

One by one the rest of the group took to the skies, those who could. Jyou and Iori, whose partners had no flight-capable evolutions, skulked along in the shadows. Yamato wished for a few brief moments that Gabumon himself could fly. That might have made quite a difference right now. 

Instead, he followed his partner and Taichi's carefully, his own Digivice in one hand, ready to evolve Gabumon if it became necessary. He stayed as quiet as he could, listening for any signs of a struggle or Taichi's voice or any voice that could belong to one of those goons. All he could hear at the moment were the subtle murmurings between Gabumon and Agumon as they discussed, he hoped, the scent and which way it was going. 

"This way," Agumon murmured, and started firmly along one street. Yamato followed, doing his best to stay out of sight and in the darkness. He didn't know how good their night vision would be, but any little bit of cover helped in his opinion. For once, he was almost grateful for his lack of hair. His usual blond mane would have been a dead giveaway in this darkness. 

He was also glad that everyone else had been too worried about Taichi to say a word about his unusual coiffure. As much as he didn't want to hide it from them, gawping at it could have been a distraction they could ill afford. 

Yamato refused to look at his watch as they worked their way along the trail. He didn't want to know just how much time had passed. He, personally, summed it up simply as _too much_. 

Then Agumon and Gabumon both stopped. Yamato was about to ask why when Agumon shook his head, and Gabumon pointed ahead of them with a paw. He looked the way they motioned, his eyes narrowing, and froze as he realized just what he was looking at. 

Taichi, held between those two same goons and still struggling the best that he could, stood there. A third knelt before him, and was busily wrapping a long length of rope around his legs and ankles, tightening them until Taichi couldn't move anymore. Two others stood a little distance away, and it took Yamato a moment or two to realize that one of them was tied up as well. Something was different about his bonds, but Yamato didn't waste his time looking at that. His attention was all on Taichi. 

"I don't care what you say. You're _not_ getting away with this, Kudo." Taichi sounded a little better than he had on the phone, more alert and a little more focused. Much more like his usual self. Yamato breathed a silent sigh of relief just hearing his voice. 

"You'd be surprised at what can be done with the right public relations personnel, Taichi." _Yamato_ was surprised to see the other tied up person being the one who answered that! _That_ was Kudo? He saw at once he was going to have a lot of questions to ask Taichi once this was over with. 

"I'm surprised at how dumb you can be and still walk upright," Taichi snapped back sharply. "If you don't let me go, you're going to regret it for the rest of your life. Which should be about ten minutes after the rest of the Chosen find out what you did." 

Ten minutes? Yamato rolled his eyes at that. Taichi obviously overestimated them. He wouldn't have put a bet on them lasting five. 

Kudo just laughed, and Yamato wouldn't have been surprised to see him smirking. His reply just sounded like that. "You mean that pretty boy rocker friend of yours hiding over there? Am I supposed to be afraid of _him_?" He laughed again and turned towards where Yamato and the Digimon were. "Come on out, Ishida. Join the fun." 

**

To Be Continued

**


	10. Cornered Rats

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the canon characters who appear in this fanfic and am not writing this for any form of profit.  
**Series Title:** Moments Without You   
**Chapter Title:** Cornered Rats   
**Timeline:** Approximately five years after the defeat of BelialVamdemon.   
**Romance:** Future Taichi x Yamato, mentions of Yamato x OC, Taichi x OC, Jyou x Sora, Ken x Daisuke, Mimi x Takeru   
**Summary:** Yamato hasn't been around for a while and Taichi wants to find out just why._

Taichi very nearly froze where he was as Kudo called out into the darkness surrounding them. He'd _hoped_ that his frantic phone call would produce results, but he hadn't expected them to come so quickly. He'd tried every delaying tactic he knew, and invented fourteen new ones, in the hopes to give Yamato more time to do something. _I guess it worked_, he thought as the blond stepped out of the darkness. 

As far as Taichi was concerned, Yamato had never looked better in his life. He wasn't sure if it was because of being rescued from a near-death situation or just because Yamato looked magnificent even late at night in his opinion. 

He also caught sight of something he wasn't certain if his captors had or not: a flash of white teeth and a orange scaly thumbs-up from his own partner. He grinned to himself. No matter if Kudo and clods had seen or not, this situation was over and done with. The only problem was what they'd do when they _did_ find out. 

"So, you decided to come flying here at top speed to rescue your fearless leader?" Even tied up, Kudo exuded authority at the moment. Taichi no longer found himself even remotely impressed. 

"No, I was just in the mood for takeout. Taichi, wanna be taken out of here?" Yamato smarted, sounding as if he'd been taking lessons from Daisuke. 

"I thought you've never ask." Taichi grinned, but held himself back from asking if they were going to have things his way or not. _Some of those fast food commercials are rubbing off on me._

Kudo and all of his buddies laughed. "What, do you think you can get away from us with just the two of you? We're _armed_ and you're not, Ishida. You don't even have _hair_. That's a bad look for you, anyway. You shouldn't have tried it." 

"You shouldn't have tried this. However, my hair will grow back. I wouldn't take any bets you trying this again." Yamato smiled, and though it wasn't a very pleasant one, Taichi liked seeing it anyway. "By the way, I don't remember saying that I was alone." 

"Let me guess, you brought some of your little friends with you?" One of Kudo's henchman snapped the words out caustically. "Well, that's not going to do you any good! We still outnumber you and we're armed and dangerous!" 

A laugh sounded, but it wasn't from either Taichi or Yamato. It came from deeper in the darkness, and Taichi couldn't say he was surprised to see Ken and Daisuke come walking up as casually as if this were a common afternoon stroll. Ken was still smiling, but it wasn't the gentle smile he was used to seeing. 

"You might be armed, but it takes a _brain_ to be dangerous," Daisuke told them. V-mon and Wormmon stood beside their partners, eyeing the strange humans as they did any other threat, waiting to see what they could do to stop it. 

Two of the armed men started to aim at them, and Ken made a small motion with one hand. Wormmon reared up a little on his hind pods and shot out a Sticky Net at them, wrapping their gun-wielding hands tightly. Both stared at the small Digimon in shock, then down at their hands, and began to flail about, doing what they could to get it off, and failing miserably. 

"And now you're not really all that armed," Yamato said, a smile touching his lips. Taichi didn't bother stifling his war whoop of victory, but it was cut off by the sharp strike of one of the others there. 

"Hey! Can't a guy be happy without someone whacking on him for it?" He glared at Arakaki, who had done the smacking, and who just shrugged at him. 

"Release Taichi." Ken's voice was calm and tinged ever so lightly with anger. Daisuke placed one hand calmly on his boyfriend's shoulder. 

"I'd do what he said if I were you, guys. If you didn't get the memo, this is Ichijouji Ken. Probably knows more ways to slice you open than I can think about, and he's been having a _very_ bad day today. Now, I can keep him off of you, but I don't know how much I could do where Yamato over there is concerned." Daisuke waved his fingers a little towards the blond. "But we're not really who you should be worried about." 

Kudo snorted. "And who do you think we should be worried about, Motomiya?" 

"Them." Daisuke pointed up, and Kudo glanced up, pulled by the same instinct that everyone has when someone points somewhere. 

Hovering over everyone were two elegantly formed armored equine figures. As soon as Taichi saw them, he kicked himself away from Arakaki and rolled towards Yamato as hard as he could, wincing as stray bits of broken glass ground into him. As soon as he was out of sight, Takeru and Hikari went into action. 

"Golden Noose!" A shimmering line of golden light appeared from both Pegasumon and Nefertimon, falling down to encircle the group, then as they moved into a quick circle, it tightened around them, preventing them from moving. 

Agumon hurried up, Gabumon with him, and with their claws started to tear at the ropes binding Taichi. Yamato helped the best that he could as the rest of the group settled in all around them. Pegasumon and Nefertimon landed, facing towards the two captives, while Hikari and Takeru got off of their partners and headed over towards their brothers. 

"Are you all right?" Hikari looked more than a little worried, and kept shooting dirty looks over her shoulder towards Kudo, who shot them right back at her. "He didn't hurt you, did he, Taichi?" 

"Nothing I can't handle." The brunet shrugged as he brushed himself and bits and pieces of rope fell off of him. "I've been in fights that took a lot more out of me." 

"You don't really think this is over, do you?" Kudo shouted, laughing. "Do you really think the entire world is just going to roll over and let _monsters_ like you take us over? Go back to where you belong!" He spat towards the two Digimon guarding him. "Get out of our world!" 

Taichi pulled himself to his feet and came over to Kudo, Yamato and the others only a few steps behind him. "What makes you hate them so much?" He asked, staring down at his very ex-boyfriend. "What did they ever do to you?" 

"I told you already. They're going to destroy our world, whether they know it or not." Kudo told him, glaring with hate-filled eyes. "This is the _human_ world. It belongs to _humans_, not to monstrosities like this! They're nothing but animals! Talking animals!" 

Ken clenched his fists tightly, and Daisuke closed a hand on his shoulder a little more firmly, leaning over to whisper softly in his ear. He glanced up at the others worriedly. "Guys, Ken and I are getting out of here. We need to do some talking. See you later." 

"Aww, what's the matter?" One of the tied up men sneered at the blue-haired teenager as he and Daisuke started away. "Don't like hearing the truth? Don't go. There's a whole lot more we could tell you! Like—ack!" 

His words were cut off, not by Ken or Taichi or Yamato, but by Daisuke. He wasn't as fast as Ken, but he was fast enough to knock the words out of the other man's mouth and stood over him, eyes blazing with a fury unlike any other. "If you open your mouth one more time and say something that hurts Ken, that will be the _last_ thing you ever do." 

No one who heard him failed to believe him. Daisuke glared at him for a few more seconds, then turned, walked back over to Ken, and started away, V-mon and Wormmon following. Taichi watched, hissing softly under his breath. 

"What's got him so stirred up?" Yamato wondered softly. Taichi glanced over at him and snorted. 

"Let's see, they're acting like being human makes you _better_ than any other life form in existence. As if they're _superior_. And they're willing to kill to make it so. Ring any bells?" 

He was going to have to figure out more things that would make Yamato blush. The tinge on his cheeks was rather adorable. 

But there were other things now to work with. He looked around, doing a quick body count, and frowned. "Um, there were two others. The ones Wormmon tied up. Where are they?" 

Sure enough, those two had vanished. The Chosen moved in a little closer to keep an eye on their current prisoners and Kudo smirked even more. 

"What did I tell you? We're _smarter_ than you kids could ever hope to be!" 

Taichi was getting really tired of hearing that. "Let's call the cops for these idiots and get out of here. I want to take a shower." And he wanted to talk a lot to Yamato, but that could come tomorrow. 

"What are we going to charge them with?" Yamato wondered, glancing over at Iori. The green-eyed Chosen had taken a mild interest in law in the last few months, though he wasn't anywhere close to being an expert. 

"I'm not sure. Kidnapping, at the least, perhaps assault and battery and attempted murder." Iori frowned a little as he eyed the situation. 

"Don't hold your breath on getting us in jail." Kudo sneered, then shut up at the sight of Yamato's deep blue eyes piercing into him with the strength of twin daggers. 

"We'll do what we can." Taichi said quietly, brushing his hair out of his eyes. Besides a bath, he wanted to sleep, preferably somewhere that he knew was safe. He suspected that wouldn't be his house, and quite probably wouldn't be for a long time to come. He hoped that Agumon wouldn't mind the company. 

Koushirou spoke quietly into a cell phone, while Taichi tried to get his brain to work at least halfway properly. For the most part, the drug had worn off, but he still wasn't as steady on his feet as he would've liked to have been. At least he ws able to think, for the most part. 

"Do you want to see a doctor?" Yamato asked quietly. Without even realizing it, he hadn't left Taichi's side for more than a few seconds since the brunet had escaped his captors. 

"No, I think I'll be all right. I just need to get some rest, that's all." Taichi glanced up a little and smiled the tiniest bit. "You know, Yamato…I'm glad you didn't get hurt doing all of this." He was glad none of them did, but Yamato being fine seemed to matter more at the moment. 

_I do care about him._ The answer was simple and to the point. Whether Yamato would believe it or not didn't matter. It was what was. 

His hand moved ever so slightly, and touched Yamato's. The blond looked down at it, then up at Taichi, wonder tingeing his features. "Taichi…" 

"Would you like to stay over in the Digital World with me?" Taichi asked, his exhaustion filtering through. "I don't think I want to stay _here_ tonight, and that's about the only place I really…want to be." He wanted to say it was the only place he felt safe, but this was Yamato he was talking to. He wanted to give his best impression to him, no matter what. He suspected Yamato would understand what he didn't say just as much as what he did. They _were_ best friends, after all. 

Yamato blinked a few times, then nodded. "Sure. No problem. I'll just have to get some things from home first. 

Both of them looked at each other for a few moments, each feeling just a little sillier than the other, but neither really caring all that much. Their hands didn't move away from each other at all. In fact, Yamato flexed his hand enough so that they were _really_ holding hands, and not just touching each other a little. 

Hikari glanced at them, then turned her attention to Takeru. "Did _you_ know about that?" She gestured briefly to their brothers. The younger blond shrugged, but had a lot of trouble hiding his grin. 

"Well, I knew of about half of it. But Yamato kind of chewed me out about it earlier. Guess what they say is true: having a near death experience can do wonders for your love life." He stopped even trying to hide his grin, especially when he caught sight of Sora watching the situation with Yamato and Taichi with a clearly amused look. 

When she saw him watching, she came over, Piyomon now a few steps behind her. "I knew." She said it calmly and without a hint of regret. "I knew before they did. Yamato _finally_ admitted I was right tonight." It was not wrong to claim that the tilt of a smile to her lips was very, very smug. 

Koushirou cleared his throat politely in an attempt to get their attention. "The police will be here shortly. We're to keep Kudo and the others under wraps until they get here, and make certain we give an accurate description of the ones that got away to the officers." 

"I still want to know how they got away in the first place!" Miyako growled softly, her brown eyes flashing in anger. Hawkmon patted her briefly on the leg. 

"We'll find them and figure it out. I promise." 

Yamato turned his attention over towards Kudo. "I think we can have someone tell us. If we're persuasive." 

Kudo snorted, having made himself as comfortable as he could given his current situation. "You've got to be joking. What makes you think I'd tell any of you anything?" 

"Because being co operative could lessen your jail time?" Iori suggested quietly. "You will need all the help you can get, I believe." He stepped a little closer. "Though I'm certain you will be given a thorough psychological examination as well. This hatred of Digimon isn't normal." 

"You don't know the first thing about normal, little boy." Kudo growled. His two friends appeared to be quite happy staying quiet at the moment and letting him do all the talking. "Normal is _not_ having creatures like that invade your world! It's an abomination!" 

"You're crazy." Taichi said it quietly, but meant every word of it. "Killing me, or any of us, wouldn't send them all scurrying back to the Digital World anyway. If anything, there are some forces there that would see that as proof that humans can't be trusted and there'd probably be a _real_ invasion. Or worse." 

Taichi didn't know how much truth was in his words, but he hoped that they'd at least get Kudo to think a little. He didn't doubt there _were_ some Digimon who just didn't trust humans, no matter what. They had every other range of human personality, so fear of those who were different, just like what Kudo had, was probably in there somewhere. 

"Like we couldn't beat them." Kudo sneered. "We outnumber them. There's _billions_ of us, and how many of _them_?" 

Taichi started to say something when Yamato shook his head. "That's not the point. The point is, you're wrong." 

"Humans and Digimon are supposed to work together. We belong together." Hikari pointed out, taking a step closer to them. "What's better than having a best friend who understands you from the inside out?" 

"I've got one. And he's _human_, thanks." Kudo sneered. "I don't _need_ some monster from another world claiming that it knows me better than I know myself." 

Yamato's lips twitched and he glanced over at Taichi, amusement and anger warring for control. "I think I understand why Ken left." 

Taichi nodded. This guy was putting a serious strain on all of their self-control. If he kept on badmouthing his friends, Taichi was pretty certain he'd start plowing into his face. There didn't seem to be any way to get through to him. 

_I wonder if he had a partner, would it help?_ He couldn't imagine any Digimon that he would torture by pairing with Kudo, though. Even someone like Piemon or Vamdemon didn't deserve him. Hell, he didn't think _Apocalymon_ did. 

Before he could ask Yamato his opinion on the matter, gunshots erupted from a few feet away, scattering the Chosen and their partners as they did their best to avoid being hit. Taichi snapped his head this way and that, trying to find out where the shots were coming from. 

"It's the ones that got away, it has to be!" Yamato growled as he pulled back, keeping Taichi as close as he could. "What are they up to?" 

That became evident very quickly as the gunfire concentrated around where Kudo and his friends were tied up. Pegasumon and Nefertimon both took to the air, since none of them were very certain on how their armor would stand up to a bullet. 

"Better watch out for them," Pegasumon said to his partner, tossing his head to indicate Hikari and Takeru. Nefertimon nodded and the pair headed straight over to them, wanting to be certain no one got hurt. 

As soon as the Chosen had been backed off enough, a slim, black-clad figure dropped down near Kudo and began to worry at the Golden Noose until it was finally untied. That didn't take very long without Pegasumon and Nefertimon there to maintain it. Kudo stood up, removing his false bondage from earlier, and sneered at the Chosen. 

"I told you. Now maybe you'll learn better." He almost looked a little kind for a moment. "If you just take your monstrosities and leave this planet, we won't bother you anymore. Otherwise, we won't stop until you _have_ left. One way or another." 

The same limousine that Taichi and Kudo had been using earlier pulled up, and he and his friends all got in without another word. It drove away just as the flashing lights and sirens of a police vehicle showed up and a young female officer got out. 

"You're the Chosen? What's going on here?" She asked, looking at them and at the fading lights of the limousine. Taichi swore to himself; Kudo had planned this carefully. _Criminals_ ran away with a scree of tires and as fast as they could. By acting normal, they were buying themselves precious time. _For that matter, they're probably going to switch cars as soon as they can and we won't have any idea where they're at._

Koushirou stepped forward calmly. "Ma'am, our leader Yagami Taichi was abducted by a group that, from what they spoke of in our hearing, has a deep hatred for Digimon and is attempting to force them off of the planet entirely. They intended to kill him and use the fear they hoped to inspire from that murder to have us all leave. We did have them held, but they were able to drive us off and escape. That limousine you saw pulling out was what they took, but I doubt they'll remain in it for very long." 

The officer eyed them all carefully. "Did you get any names?" She didn't exactly sound as if she believed them or disbelieved them. Taichi couldn't blame her. It did sound a little strange, since almost no one had ever shown any real hatred for Digimon before now. 

"Their ringleader was Kudo Ichiro. The soccer star." Taichi looked her right in the eyes. "I was on a date with him tonight, and he had me drugged and brought here. He was going to pretend to be a 'witness' to them killing me instead of actively helping in it. If you run across him, he'll probably deny everything." 

She said nothing, only took down that name and the others that Taichi gave her and all the other information about what had happened that night. Once she was done, she looked at Taichi. "If you were drugged, I suggest you go to the hospital and have some blood tests done to back it up." 

"She's right," Jyou agreed before Taichi could protest that he felt a lot better now. "There could still be some traces of it in your bloodstream, and that would help us a lot." 

Yamato patted him on the shoulder. "Come on, I'll go with you. We can go get some rest right after it. I promise." His hand dropped back down to fold around Taichi's again and the brunet flashed a quick smile at him. 

"I guess. Might as well get it done." Taichi didn't like the idea of visiting a doctor, even for something like this, but he'd done a lot of things he didn't like to do for the good of the world. 

Yamato pressed something into his hand and Taichi glanced down to see his Digivice there. "Come on. Let's take the quick way." He jerked his head towards Agumon and Gabumon, both of whom looked eager to help out in any way that they could. 

"Right. Ready, Agumon?" 

"Ready, Taichi!" His partner declared, Gabumon's agreement only a few breaths behind his. 

Taichi nodded, then clenched the device, concentrating on helping his partner evolve. Light exploded all around Agumon, and he began to grow quickly. "Agumon, evolve to _Greymon_!" 

Next to him, Gabumon also began to glow and grow. "Gabumon, evolve to _Garurumon!_" 

Once they were both ready, Taichi jumped onto Greymon's back and turned to see Yamato already mounted on Garurumon. The rest of the Chosen were scattering back to their homes now that the danger was over, for the moment at least. He reminded himself to talk to Ken when he could, and see how the former Kaiser was doing. He glanced over at Yamato again and smiled a little. It had been a long time since they'd traveled together like this. It was good to do it again. 

"Let's go!" Together, Greymon, Garurumon, Taichi, and Yamato leaped out into the night, heading for the nearest hospital. 

Not that far away, five men watched as the Digimon and their partners scattered. They had ditched the limousine as soon as they could and now stood waiting for their next vehicle to answer the call they'd made. Kudo Ichiro growled softly under his breath. 

"This isn't over." 

**

To Be Continued

**


	11. Confessions and Understandings

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the canon characters who appear in this fanfic and am not writing this for any form of profit.  
**Series Title:** Moments Without You   
**Chapter Title:** Confessions and Understandings   
**Timeline:** Approximately five years after the defeat of BelialVamdemon.   
**Romance:** Taichi x Yamato, mentions of Yamato x OC, Taichi x OC, Jyou x Sora, Ken x Daisuke, Mimi x Takeru   
**Summary:** Yamato hasn't been around for a while and Taichi wants to find out just why._

Hospitals would never change. They would always have that faint far too sanitized undertone that crawled into the back of one's throat and stayed there for hours, long after the visit was over with. It was always just a little too quiet, even for people trying not to be in too much pain, with a kind of deadness to the air that sucked all the life out of every sound that _was_ made. Even the complimentary vending machines, which never have exactly what it is you want and sometimes trick you into getting something that you _don't_ want by having it beside what you settled on, feel a little less than lively. 

Taichi's hatred of hospitals had been born on the day that his sister had collapsed while he was supposed to be taking care of her. He hadn't really liked them that much _before_ that, but that day had solidified his mild child's dislike into diamond-pure hatred. 

"Yamato, I feel fine. Really." If he could, he would have hated Kudo even more for having drugged him so everyone else was insisting that he go to the hospital. He was serious. He didn't feel all that bad. A few good meals and a couple of good nights of sleep would fix him up, he was certain of it. 

"I don't care. You're going." Yamato just looked at him with those cool blue eyes that went on forever. "_I_ want to be sure you're all right." 

Well, damn. What could he say to that? After everything that had happened that night, he was more than willing to give Yamato virtually anything that he wanted. And it wasn't that much of a problem was it? So he'd have to sit and get his blood tested and wait for a couple of hours. At least he could find a place to sit down and rest, and he and Yamato could maybe get a little talking done. It wasn't the most comfortable place in the world, and the _least_ romantic he could think of, but he could manage. 

They weren't being left alone, even as they sat in the waiting room together. Agumon and Gabumon were a little distance away, keeping watch on the doors, while the other Chosen were scattered around the area, making sure that Kudo and his idiot pack left them alone. _They'll be back. Somewhere, somehow. Sometime._ Taichi was certain of it. That kind of idiot didn't just vanish into thin air. 

"Taichi…" Yamato spoke his name quietly, and the brunet looked towards him curiously. Yamato's lips parted as if he were going to say something, then he glanced down towards where their hands were touching ever so lightly. Taichi looked there, then looked back up at him. 

"Yeah. Guess we do have something to talk about," he replied when Yamato said nothing else. He wondered just what he _could_ say. All that time they had spent together in the apartment and the Digital World, just being with one another, as close as two people could be, and still not seeing it. 

Well, no one had ever accused him of being the brightest candle in the box. And Yamato hadn't noticed anything either so it wasn't just _his_ fault. 

On the other hand, how did he know Yamato hadn't? The blond wasn't exactly one to say something when he liked someone else, in any kind of way. That was why Sora had been the one to approach _him_ all those years ago. 

"Sora knew, didn't she?" Taichi said suddenly. It clicked in his mind. A hundred little pieces of information he'd heard and seen and disregarded, and now they all created a gestalt. "She knew…we…you…" 

"Right." Yamato turned away just a little, but his hand never left Taichi's. "That was the whole deal with breaking up with me." 

Taichi blinked a few times, not sure of what he was hearing. "So…all this time?" They didn't have to use complete sentences. They knew what they were talking about. And they _had_ known each other long enough to fill in the blanks. 

"I don't even know _when_. It's not like there was one day when I woke up and thought that you were _more_ than just my best friend." Yamato shook his head, finding the far wall of the hospital waiting room to be extraordinarily fascinating at the moment. "But she knew anyway. She wanted me to say something when I didn't even know what it was I was feeling. And I didn't _want_ to feel it then." 

Something shifted inside of Taichi. He thought it might be disappointment. Or relief. Or just confusion. Or perhaps indigestion from that too rich meal. "You didn't?" 

"Yeah. For a lot of reasons. Mainly because I don't think I could live without you around, and I didn't know what you'd think of something like this. I know, stupid. I should've trusted you more. Best friends forever, no matter what, and all of that." Yamato shrugged and still stared at the wall. "Maybe if I had…tonight wouldn't have happened." 

Taichi winced, because he was fairly sure that Yamato was right. If he'd had _any_ idea that Yamato had cared about him as more than a friend, he wouldn't have so much as said more than 'hello' to Kudo. He'd always had so much more fun with Yamato than anyone else. Why would he have ever wanted or needed anyone else when it came to that? 

He shook his head, though. Why waste time arguing about what might or might not have happened? "Doesn't matter, Yamato. We've got more important things to worry about." He could think of several, some of which had gone driving off in a limousine that night, but the really important one was sitting right next to him. 

"Guess not." Yamato looked back at him, the overhead lights gleaming in his eyes. "So, what are you doing after this is done?" 

"Probably trying to sleep," Taichi teased a little. "What about you?" 

"Hm. I think I could be going to the Digital World and doing the same thing. I could probably use a little company, though. Someone who needs someone to keep an eye on him, since he has a tendency to get into trouble if I'm not there to watch his back." Yamato's lips curved a little, and Taichi wondered what it would be like to feel them touching his own. To kiss them. 

He had the _strangest_ ideas when he got tired. He knew exactly what he and Yamato had been talking about and what they'd meant, but should he be thinking about _kissing_ when all of this had happened? Even though straightening things out with Yamato was what he wanted to do the most, shouldn't that come afterwards instead of somewhere in the middle? There were days when he really wondered about his mind. 

"Yeah. I think I might be going there too. Sleeping there's always better. Fresh air and all of that." Not to mention the extraordinarily attractive company. Yamato's hair was still thin and sparse, especially compared to what it had looked like a few short months ago, but that didn't change Taichi's appreciation of him one bit. Sure, he was looking forward to seeing if the rumors were true and that running one's fingers through Yamato's hair made him make some interesting noises, but he could wait a while to do that. It could be a sort of reward for putting up with the occasionally annoying blond for who knew how long. He wasn't going to tell Yamato about it, though. He wanted the feeling to be a surprise for the both of them. He had a suspicion that the rumor _was_ true. After all, the way Yamato had reacted when he'd felt his coating of hair earlier had indicated very strongly that it was. 

Taichi leaned back in the chair, still feeling Yamato's fingers so close to his own. They weren't doing much actual touching, being in public, but they weren't very far from it. He could hardly wait to get to the Digital World, out of sight of anyone who might try to frown and disapprove of displays of affection, and see what both of them might be inclined to do at that point. 

What was taking so long? Surely it couldn't take hours and hours to just do a simple blood test? Then again, with all the time he _didn't_ spend in hospitals and around doctor's offices, what did he know about how long procedures like this took? 

The tips of Yamato's guitar-callused fingers brushed against the back of his hand, and he glanced towards him. Yamato looked back at him, a faintly amused tilt to his lips. Taichi raised up his eyebrows, wondering what was going through the other's mind. 

"What is it?" he asked when there was no other indication of what Yamato was thinking. 

"If I'd said something before you left, what would you have done?" Yamato asked him. "Takeru was trying to get me to do that. I still thought you thought I was…you know, straight." 

"Well, you've only dated girls. What else was I supposed to think you were? A pretzel?" Taichi rolled his eyes and thwacked the top of Yamato's head. "Every time you got a new girlfriend, you had to brag about it to me. Do you know how _painful_ that was?" 

He was rather pleased to see the way Yamato reddened at that and kept on going. "And when you told me about all the times you've kissed them and how good it all was…it just got even worse! You were practically screaming at me that you weren't interested and never would be!" He realized somewhere in there that his fingers had tightened into a real hold on Yamato's, and there was an old couple across the room staring at them. He knew he should mind, and that he should shut up and drop the hand and pretend they were nothing more than friends. 

He didn't. 

"I'm sorry," Yamato said quietly, still not looking exactly at him. "I didn't know how it was hurting you. I was just convinced she was wrong. Or trying to convince myself, anyway." 

Taichi's voice was very small when he spoke. "Did you…not want to like me?" 

"NO!" Yamato's head snapped around and he stared at Taichi with shock-widened eyes. "That's the _last_ thing I wanted! I was scared, Taichi…scared _because_ I liked you and I didn't know how _you_ felt about it. I made the stupidest decision I could: I figured if I never said anything about it, it would go away, and I'd still have you as a friend. But if I _did_ say something to you about it, then you might not…might not…and if you didn't, then…" Yamato's cheeks were a deep shade of red right now, and Taichi was hooked on every word, or not-word, that fell from his lips. "At least I'd still be your friend if I _didn't_ say anything…I don't ever want to not be your friend." 

Taichi stared at him for almost a minute, saying nothing. Then he smacked Yamato again. "That's for thinking I'd ever _not_ like you, idiot!" A second smack. "That's for everything you put me through the last couple of years!" Then a third one. "And that's just for anything you might do in the future." 

Before Yamato could move an inch, Taichi moved in and claimed those lips hungrily and deeply. The other froze where he sat, and Taichi didn't pay the slightest bit of attention to the old couple, except to notice that they got up and left very fast, whispering to each other as they did. 

When he pulled back, he stared at Yamato and grinned. "Want to know what that was for?" Yamato nodded, dumbfounded. "Too bad. I'm not telling you." 

He sat back down in his chair and folded his arms smugly. A quick look at Yamato told him plainly that if they hadn't been in a hospital, he would have shortly _needed_ one simply from the amount of pounding the blond would have unleashed on him. 

Perhaps having to visit here wasn't all that bad, now that he thought about it a little more. 

"Yagami Taichi?" A nurse beckoned to him, and both of them got up to head over to her. She glanced briefly at Yamato but said nothing as they followed her to the doctor's office. 

Once they were both seated in semi-comfortable chairs, the doctor entered and took his own seat. "We found some traces of a rare drug in your intestines," he told Taichi, getting right down to business. "I believe it was administered to you mixed in with food?" 

"That's the best guess I have," Taichi replied. "I didn't have any idea of what was going on." He cursed himself for that. No matter what, he still felt that he should have _known_. It would have made sense if he'd known. It didn't that he _didn't_. He was the leader, supposed to be the one who knew in advance when something was wrong and how to fix it. He wanted to kick himself. Maybe he could get Daisuke to do it for him. Daisuke would understand. 

The doctor nodded a little, looking through a few papers in a folder. "There shouldn't be too many side effects left, based on how little was left. The drug itself isn't even on the market, and I have no idea of how they may have acquired some of it. That's something we're going to be checking into, you may trust us on that. I don't think you need to be checked in. Other than those traces, you're as healthy as can be. You'll need to get some sleep and a couple of good meals, and that should finish getting the rest of it out of you." 

"Good." It was Yamato who responded, and the doctor glanced at him slightly. "If you'll excuse us, doctor, Taichi should really be getting that sleep. And you're going to be eating _my_ cooking until we know you're one hundred percent again." 

Taichi couldn't bring himself to argue with it. Not after some of the meals Yamato had fixed earlier in the month. He wanted to make some too, but just not right now. He _was_ a bit under the weather, after all. 

The doctor nodded, closing the folder, then reached out to pick up a pen and a notepad. "Mr. Ishida, if you wouldn't mind, a request…could I have your autograph? My daughter is a huge fan of the Teenage Wolves. She's always asking for your songs to be played on the radio. She'd love it if I could bring her home your signature." 

Taichi very nearly burst out with a mixture of pride and laughter as a slightly blushy Yamato signed the notepad and pushed it back towards the doctor. "Come on, hot shot rock star, let's get out of here and let everyone else know that I'm still in one piece." 

"You won't be for long if you keep that up," Yamato warned him good naturedly. Taichi ruffled the fuzz on Yamato's hair, then left the office with the blond a step or two behind him. He couldn't have felt better at the moment if he'd tried. Everything was going just as well as it really should have been. He and Yamato had cleared things up between them, he wasn't being held by a group of psychopaths who really needed to get out in the fresh air and away from their personal conspiracy theories, and he was going to spend a few days in one of his favorite places, with some of his favorite people, human and otherwise. 

_Good thing this is the weekend coming up. I don't have to be anywhere or anything for a while._ He might have to take some of his books with him for studying, but he didn't have any actual classes til Wednesday. He could take all the time he would need to get himself relaxed and back up to speed. 

Picking up Gabumon and Agumon on the way out, he started for the door, not at all surprised to see the group starting to gather outside. As soon as he stepped through it, he declared, "I'm going to the Digital World, and I'm not coming back until Tuesday night. I'm going to get fed by Yamato, hang out with Gabumon and Agumon, and completely vegetate and forget this whole mess ever happened for a few days. Anyone who wants to come hang out is welcome to do so. If there's any trouble, kick it's ass and don't call us unless you need Omegamon to crush it. Everyone got that?" 

"Don't forget to take your D-Terminals," Koushirou said, one inch away from a smile that Taichi could see. "If we do need you, we need to be able to get in touch right away." 

Taichi waved a hand carelessly. He knew he'd have to pack before they went anyway. "I know, I know. We're going to be sure we get them. Now, we need to get home so we can get _home_!" 

There was no need to discuss the difference in meaning he intended by the same word. Agumon and Gabumon each evolved to their Adult forms only a few seconds later, and the group of Digimon and humans coursed through the night together. 

Elsewhere in the city, a door was thrown open, revealing a well furnished apartment in a tall high rise. Kudo Ichiro stalked into the apartment, tossing his shoes off and sliding his slippers on even as he began to swear at the top of his lungs. He'd paid a great deal of money to have this place soundproofed completely, and he was going to make certain he got his money's worth out of it. 

"If you're quite done, Kudo," a smooth voice spoke from the center of the living room. The soccer player all but growled in response, and the voice hardened. "That's enough. I'm not paying you to educate everyone in here with how well you can use foul language. All of you, sit down. Obviously things didn't go well. Tell me what happened." 

Kudo threw himself into his favorite chair. "Not going well is an _understatement_. The only way things could have went worse would be if we'd actually been caught. I don't know how they found us. Yagami called them, but we weren't exactly out there in the lights. They shouldn't have been able to find us that _fast_, either." 

"It was those creepy Digimon things!" Arakaki declared, shuddering violently as he spoke the word. Ever since one of them had attacked the hospital he'd been in several years earlier, he'd hated Digimon and wanted them to leave him and everything he cared about alone. He'd do anything to make that happen. "They can find you anywhere!" 

"Their powers are not as unlimited as you think," the smooth voice all but purred. "There are ways to get around them." 

"That's what we thought we'd done," Kudo all but pouted, a petulant curl to his lips. "If we'd gotten rid of Yagami tonight, they'd be out of here by Monday. I'd bet on it." 

A second voice snorted from the doorway to one of the bedrooms. "I wouldn't be all that certain about it. They're like cockroaches. You think you've squashed them and they just crop right back up." 

"Enough." The first voice cut them both off with a languid wave of one hand. "We have more plans to make to be certain we achieve our goals. I do not believe the violent approach will work that well." 

Kudo leaned forward, eyes gleaming darkly. "What do you have in mind?" He ached for revenge on the beasts that had ruined his life. When they'd first appeared when he was just a kid, no one had believed he'd seen them. For years, _he_ hadn't believed: until they had appeared in Odaiba, under Vamdemon's control. He'd been deemed too old to be the one they were searching for then, but that hadn't stopped him from staring at them all until he'd passed out. 

_I was supposed to be one of them. I was supposed to save the world._ The thoughts were familiar ones. They'd surged through his mind a hundred times, a thousand times, day after day. Those kids had stolen what was rightfully his, and he _hated_ them and all of their Digimon for it. If he couldn't have it, then he didn't want anything to remind him of it anywhere he could see it. 

A slow, dark smile slid across the face of the other. If anyone else had known who it was that sat here with them, they wouldn't have believed it. His reputation was perfect, flawless. He'd even appeared with the Chosen for interviews, praising them for their fine work in saving the world many times. Kudo himself wasn't even certain why this man had allied with them. All he knew was that he was the one who provided the money, the information, and some of the special tools that they used in their quest. 

"If we can't get them to leave because they're not wanted here, then we'll just make it illegal for them to be here in the first place," their benefactor purred. "I think if we can get a few people into the right positions, and stage a few accidents that look a _great_ deal like wild Digimon attacks, then we can accomplish our goal with a great deal more ease." 

"And that's what I told you from the beginning," the second voice spoke up. Kudo knew even less about him than he did about their benefactor. They'd shown up together, but the second one had only said he had his own reasons for wanting the Chosen gone, and they'd find those out once they _were_ gone, and not before. He hadn't given them much more than a few snarky comments when it came to that. 

The benefactor only waved him to silence again, then turned his full attention back to the soccer player. "My dear Kudo, how would you like to go into politics?" 

**

To Be Continued

**


	12. A Quiet Ending

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the canon characters who appear in this fanfic and am not writing this for any form of profit.   
**Series Title:** Moments Without You   
**Chapter Title:** A Quiet Ending   
**Timeline:** Approximately five years after the defeat of BelialVamdemon.   
**Romance:** Taichi x Yamato, mentions of Yamato x OC, Taichi x OC, Jyou x Sora, Ken x Daisuke, Mimi x Takeru  
**Note:** Yeah, this is the last chapter. The author's note at the end explains a touch more. See you down there.   
**Summary:** Yamato hasn't been around for a while and Taichi wants to find out just why._

Taichi put the last of his clothes into the bag and zipped it shut. His D-Terminal had already been stuffed into a side pocket, and he made yet another mental note to get himself a new cell phone as soon as he could. The events of that night had proven to him very clearly that he needed one. The D-Terminal was quick and useful, but a cell didn't require spell-check. 

"Are you ready yet?" Yamato peered into the room, his own bag already over one shoulder, since they'd stopped by his place first to get his things. "Takeru's ready to take us there whenever you are." 

"I'm done." Taichi swung the bag over one shoulder. Hikari would tell their parents that he wasn't going to be available for a while, though exactly why was going to be left up to him to deal with. _At least I don't have to do it for a while._ He hoped there wouldn't be much of a fuss on the news about it, since it was guaranteed his parents would worry and fret if they knew any of it had happened. 

Yamato stepped back and waited for him to come out of the room. Concern still lit those eyes of his, and Taichi's stomach shivered in warmth at the sight of it. He couldn't even begin to put into words everything he felt when he looked at Yamato. All over again he wished that he'd had some clue as to how he'd actually felt so much sooner. Maybe tonight really wouldn't have happened. 

Though honestly, it didn't matter. What had happened was done, and there was no way that Kudo and any of his crew were going to get near him or any of the others again. They would all be on their guard too much. 

That did make him wonder what else they were going to try. They weren't just going to give up. He hadn't spent that much time with them, but he'd absolutely gotten that impression. How someone could _hate_ so much, and hate _Digimon_ of all things baffled him. 

Takeru stood in his small living room, Patamon hunched on his shoulder. The younger blond held his D-3 in one hand as he stood in front of Taichi's computer, which had already been booted up and the gateway program pulled up on it. "Are you going to need anything on this?" Takeru asked, motioning to the desktop. 

"I don't think so. I don't have that much homework I haven't done yet, and most of it's already on my laptop." Taichi picked up the portable and checked it over quickly. It was a little strange to think about taking a computer into a world composed of computer data, but Koushirou, Miyako, and Ken had been doing it for years. He was doing it mainly to make certain he had something to keep his mind occupied when he couldn't be running around enjoying himself with Gabumon, Agumon, and Yamato. 

"All right, then let's get going." Takeru held his D-3 out towards the computer as Taichi and Yamato came to stand beside him, Gabumon and Agumon joining them. "Digital Gate open!" 

Light and sound surrounded them, then there was the strange combination of sensation that was a mixture of moving up and down at the same time. Then all of them stood just a few feet away from a small television portal. Taichi stretched, breathing in the lovely, if unusual, scent of digital air. "Good to be back here." He and Yamato had visited not all that long ago, but he always enjoyed coming back here. It was their second home, after all. 

"Take care of yourselves," Takeru advised. "We'll keep you updated on what's going on back home." 

"Right. You do that." Taichi was only half-listening as he reshouldered his bag and looked around. They'd picked out this area in particular for their mini-vacation. There were several trees nearby full of the various kinds of fruits, vegetables, and meats that grew in the Digital World, and a swiftly running stream that would provide them with water. For shelter, there was a small cave formed from a small rise of mountains nearby. It was just perfect for a weekend getaway, more or less. 

Takeru shook his head and shot a glance at his brother. "Are you going to be paying attention to what's going on, or should we send someone to do that for you?" 

"We'll be fine, Takeru," Yamato told him. His attention was more or less on Taichi as he adjusted his own bag. He wanted to find out just what kind of cooking materials they had here. There would be fish in the stream, and he was certain he could cook some of his favorites from what else was available, but he wanted to get a better assessment of what he had as soon as possible. Breakfast time would come very soon, after all. 

Takeru sighed again. There were days when he wondered why he bothered with them. Then he thought of how he felt when it was just him and Mimi in the Digital World, and decided maybe he wouldn't smack them in the head after all. "See you around. Get some rest." 

He didn't bother waiting for a reply, which was just as well as there wasn't one. Moments later, Agumon, Gabumon, Yamato, and Taichi were the only ones in the clearing. 

"So what should we do first?" Agumon asked, looking this way and that at all the available options. Fishing, swimming, playing, having a nap…they were all good to him. 

Getting everything put into the cave they'd be using to sleep in didn't take all that long, since it mostly consisted of finding a pair of niches big enough for them to stuff their bags in, and for a couple of larger niches for Taichi's laptop and Yamato's guitar. He was going to keep in practice while they were there. 

"Have you thought about getting a wig until all of your hair grows back in?" Taichi asked, turning to look at the blond. "That way you wouldn't have to worry about what to tell the rest of the band. Just tell 'em you got a bad haircut or something." 

Yamato shrugged. "I don't know. I might just tell them what really happened. We don't have any concerts for a while, so by the time we do, it could all be back anyway. And no publicity shoots, either." That was a relief, too. If this had to happen, then it was a perfect stroke of timing. 

"Well, whatever." Taichi wasn't going to stress himself about it. It was Yamato's decision to make. "Want to go swimming? I bet that stream feeds out into a lake." 

"Let's find out then." Yamato ruffled a hand through what passed for his hair, out of habit if nothing else, and started out of the cave. It was still dark here in the Digital World, just like it was on Earth, but it still lacked a couple of hours until midnight at least. The stars scattered overhead were visible in the odd, slightly off-setting constellations he'd been seeing for years now. They weren't anywhere near like the ones he remembered from home, but they were familiar at the same time. The thought of swimming underneath them, with Taichi, was one of the most attractive he'd had in quite a long time. 

"We're going to go see if there's a lake close enough to do some swimming in," Taichi told their partners as they stepped out of the cave. "Want to come along?" 

"Sure!" The two Digimon chorused in answer. "Want a ride?" Agumon continued, ready to evolve at a moment's notice. 

"That'll get us there a lot quicker," Taichi agreed, rummaging for his Digivice. In a matter of moments, all four of them were moving along as quickly as they could. Greymon and Garurumon could see much better than humans could in the darkness, and avoided missteps and trips as easily as they would have in the daylight. Taichi clung to his partner's neck, riding with the skill of long practice. 

_How could anyone not like doing this?_ He hated thinking about Kudo and his idiot brigade, especially in a sweet moment like this, but they still kept cropping up in his thoughts. He was going to have to get over that. 

"Makes you wonder how anyone could not love this, doesn't it?" Yamato asked from where Garurumon coursed next to him. Taichi snorted some. 

"I was just thinking the same thing. They've got to be idiots." Just because they didn't have Digimon didn't mean they got to ruin it for all of those who _did_. Sour grapes, that was the whole thing, he bet. 

Just as Taichi had suspected, the stream widened out into a broad lake, perfect for swimming, and reflecting all the light of the stars above. Yamato swung himself off of Garurumon and stared at it in breathless awe. A part of his mind was already busily taking notes and thinking about how to make it into a song, but the rest of his awareness was simply stunned. 

"Come on!" Taichi grinned, poking Yamato in the side. "Let's go!" He stripped off his shirt and pants in seconds, then ran as quickly as he could towards the lake, wading in until he was up to his waist before he started to swim farther in. 

Yamato shook his head, then tossed his own clothes to the side and joined his friend in the crystal clear waters. He saw Agumon and Gabumon making themselves comfortable on a stretch of beach to one side, and wasn't surprised. Gabumon hated getting his fur wet, after all. They'd be all right. 

He stroked through the water until he found where Taichi was, and watched him for a moment or two. Starlight and the faint hints of digital moonlight wrapped all around him, reminding Yamato of the first night Taichi had stayed at his place. _Was that when I started to figure it out?_ It had helped, if nothing else. 

"Just going to swim there and stare at me?" Taichi teased him, lazily backstroking. He wasn't as good a swimmer as Yamato was, but he managed most of the time. "I admit the view's pretty good…" 

Yamato rolled his eyes, then splashed quickly at Taichi before he darted off through the water, moving as quickly as an eel. "It's not all that good. I can think of a few better ones!" he teased. Taichi glowered in his direction. 

"What do you mean by that?" he yelled. Yamato only slyly grinned. 

"Catch me and I might tell you." He swam easily and lightly, dodging Taichi's attempts to grab hold of him. As hard as the brunet tried, whenever he thought he was going to be able to seize onto Yamato, his friend just turned and was out of reach a second later. 

Taichi finally gave up, glaring half-heartedly as Yamato relaxed on his back a few feet away. He _looked_ as if he were hardly paying attention, but Taichi had already learned quickly that pose was just that: a pose. "How'd you learn to do that?" 

"Practice. That's how you learn how to do anything, you know. Music. Swimming. Anything." Yamato shifted his attention briefly over to Taichi, and when their eyes met a rush of heat passed all through Taichi. 

"Anything, huh?" He slowly moved closer to Yamato, who didn't move. "Does that include…everything?" 

"You don't wear goggles anymore so they can't be squeezing your brains out," Yamato replied, his eyes closed, but a small smile touching his lips. "That's what I just said, isn't it?" 

Taichi started to reach for him, but before he got close enough, Yamato's hand flew out and wrapped around his wrist, pulling Taichi closer to him. "Everything," the blond whispered before he closed in and fastened his lips on Taichi's. 

Since that was more or less what Taichi himself had had in mind when he'd gotten closer, all he did was start to kiss back. Both of them bobbed up and down in the water as they moved closer together, the heat building up between them as the kiss lengthened and lengthened. 

Finally Taichi moved back, trying to catch his breath a little. He wanted to say something, but nothing that came to mind was even remotely intelligent. At the very least, Yamato was a better kisser than Kudo. Not that he could remember actually kissing him, but Taichi couldn't think of anyone who _would_ be a better kisser right now. If someone out there was better, he didn't want to meet them. 

"I think we should go back. It's getting kind of late." Yamato murmured, unable to take his eyes off of Taichi. Taichi nodded a little, his voice still stolen by the kiss. Who needed talking when you could communicate like _that_? 

Side by side they swam back to the beach and emerged dripping to a realization. "I don't think we brought towels." Taichi finally managed to force coherent speech from himself. The short swim had helped with that, especially since the water was starting to cool off some. It had quenched most of the heat that had flared from that kiss. He wasn't entirely certain yet just how much he liked that fact, either. 

"We'll just sit here and dry off then," Yamato shrugged as he settled down onto a clear patch of grass. "Then we can go back. Or take a nap here, doesn't matter which." 

Taichi nodded and found his own patch of grass to sit and drip on. "That was fun." It was hard, even for him, to be certain if he were talking about the swimming or the kissing. He didn't think it mattered very much. They were about the same thing, after all. Both had been intensely amusing and he wouldn't have traded doing either for anything else. 

"Wish we could do it some more." Again, what Yamato was referring to could have been almost anything. 

"We've got time." Taichi leaned back and folded his arms underneath his head, staring up at the stars. "We've got a few days here, at least." 

"Right." Yamato nodded a little. "And you're going to rest. You don't have a choice in it." 

Taichi rolled his eyes. "I know. That's kind of what I agreed to by coming here in the first place. Well, that and the promise of getting to eat what _you_ make for as long as we're here." 

"I'm not as good as you think." Yamato protested, the faintest hint of a blush reddening his cheeks. "You just haven't had enough variety." 

"If variety means not liking what you cook, then I don't want it to start with." Taichi retorted. "And the only way I'm staying here is if _you_ cook every meal. Otherwise, I'm going home!" He put a deliberate plaintive whine to his tone, and wasn't surprised hear a groan from where Yamato sat. He took that as assent, especially since Yamato said nothing else in protest. He loved winning arguments like that, especially ones with Yamato. They were usually the only ones he _could_ win against him, too. 

Not very much time had passed before they were both dry and ready to head back to their little cavelet. Taichi stretched as he pulled his clothes back on and ran his fingers through his hair to get it back into the proper spiky look. He looked over at Yamato and concealed a smile at the soft fuzz that was all the other had for hair at the moment. _Can't wait until he's got it all back._ He'd gotten more or less used to it over the last couple of weeks, but he really did want to see Yamato back to his normal self again. 

"Do you think there's any more of them out there? Like Kudo?" Yamato asked as they came within sight of the cave. Taichi sighed. He wished there were something better to talk about. Or to do. Unfortunately, they couldn't' spend _all_ of their time kissing. Unfortunately. 

"I don't know. I'm still trying to believe any of them exist in the first place." Taichi rubbed the back of his head. "Could we talk about something else?" 

"Yeah. Sure, no problem." Yamato winced a little. "Sorry, I didn't…" He didn't finish the sentence, since Taichi reached out and waggled a finger in front of his face. 

"That's one rule _I'm_ putting on this little getaway. We're not going to talk about them. Remember I said I was going to vegetate and forget about it? I meant that. And that means you're not talking about them either. Okay?" 

Yamato eyed him for a moment, then broke into a warm, brilliant smile. "Talk about _who_ again?" 

Taichi grinned. That was just what he wanted to hear. "Now, what are we going to have for breakfast?" 

Yamato groaned slightly. "I don't. I haven't checked out what we've got yet." He'd _meant_ to, but they'd gotten distracted by the lake and the swimming and everything else. 

"Don't worry about it then. We'll figure it out in the morning." Taichi dropped his hand, and caught Yamato's in it. "Come on. Let's walk back. It shouldn't take that long." 

Yamato almost protested, til he saw the look in Taichi's eyes. Their partners weren't too tired to take them back, but the thought of walking with Taichi _was_ pretty attractive. "All right," he agreed, then looked at Gabumon. "You don't mind, do you?" 

"It's no problem at all." Gabumon reassured him with a comforting pat of his paw on Yamato's leg. "It's a beautiful night, anyway. We should enjoy it while we're here." 

Agumon nodded his agreement from the other side of Taichi, and Yamato smiled a little. He couldn't believe just how much things had changed in such a short amount of time. It just didn't seem possible. But here they were. 

He glanced down to where his hand and Taichi's were joined. If someone had told him just that morning this would happen, he wouldn't have believed them at all. _I love him._ The words came easily to his mind, if not so easily to his lips just yet. But he was willing to wait til they did. They were _together_, there was no doubt about it. 

"You know, I really should do something nice for Sora. She knew all along. Before I did, anyway." Yamato wondered just how she'd figured it out. Was it something to do with being the Chosen of Love? But then wouldn't have Miyako have known as well? He didn't really always know how their Crests factored into their normal lives. 

"We'll figure something out." Taichi yawned, covering his mouth with the back of his hand as he did. She really had done them a favor, after all, even if it had taken Yamato a while to figure it out. Taichi suspected it could possibly have something to do with him being blond. 

Both of them were dragging their feet in exhaustion by the time they made their way back into the cavelet. It was warm enough that they didn't need a fire, and the only thing Taichi could manage to bring to mind was that it was going to be a very hard surface to lay on if he couldn't stay awake long enough to get the blanket he'd pushed into the very bottom of his bag out. 

_Should brought a sleeping bag._ Maybe he could get one of the others to bring one when they came to visit. For now, he managed to unzip the bag and pawed deep into the bottom to find that blanket. "Yamato?" he mumbled briefly, still searching for the blanket. "Only brought one blanket." He hadn't planned for this trip as well as he'd thought he had. 

"Me too." Yamato grumbled from a few feet away. "Share 'em?" His thoughts were moving slowly and fitfully, but sharing made sense, didn't it? One below, one on top, and they'd both be comfortable. 

Together they managed to get a small area of the cave a little more comfortable and they both snuggled under the light blanket. Yamato lay there, his eyes half-closed, and tried to figure out what would make this feel even better. Not that laying there with Taichi's warmth so deliciously close wasn't wonderful the way it was. But he was certain there was something missing. Now all he had to do was find out just what it was that _was_ missing. 

_Sleep? No. Not yet._ Sleep was tugging at his shoulder, demanding that he pay attention to it, and he thought it had already caught Taichi. The other's breath was soft and deep, at least. He sounded so much like he had that night weeks earlier. Yamato smiled at the thought. He didn't mind so much now that he hadn't said anything then, because they wouldn't be having this moment now, and he didn't want to trade it for anything. 

Slowly, without thinking about it, he wrapped one arm around Taichi and pulled the brunet a little closer. This was what he'd been missing, what he'd missed since that very first night. He didn't have to leave this time. He could stay until morning, and they could wake up with one another. He closed his eyes, only a few lost and semi-confused thoughts now stirring through his mind. The last thing he heard before sleep claimed him for its own was not just Taichi's soft breath near him, but the sounds of their partners settling in as well. No matter what happened in the days to come, Yamato was certain that they would never have to spend another moment without each other that they didn't want to. 

**

The End

**

_**Note:** I decided to bring this to a sweet ending. I know, there's still Kudo and his plans and his boss's plans and a couple of secrets that I know and you don't just yet. That's what sequels are for. I do not know just at this moment when I will get to the sequel, but I will do it. For now, as always, I have many other fic-worlds I want to explore. I hope you've enjoyed it so far. Thanks for sticking with me._


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